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Overcoming Hiring Mistake #1: Inadequate Job Descriptions

By Vistage International, Barry Deutsch and Brad Remillard

What’s the most common hiring mistake?

According to Vistage speakers Barry Deutsch and Brad Remillard, it’s using inadequate job descriptions to guide the hiring process.

In fact, after conducting a survey of 225 executive level hires in 134 different companies, the two partners found that a staggering 93 percent of searches that resulted in new executive failure made this critical mistake at the outset of the process.

“The first thing most companies do in a job search is throw together a very generic job description,” notes Deutsch. “Or worse, they pull an old, outdated job description off the shelf, dust it off and pronounce it fit for hiring the new executive. Nine out of ten times, that’s a sure recipe for failure.”

Why?wheels turn paper

Because most traditional job descriptions consist of vague, nebulous terms that lump together a mishmash of skills, knowledge, abilities, attributes, responsibilities, experience, education and behavioral adjectives — none of which are consistent predictors of on-the-job-success.

“Traditional job descriptions don’t help to align organizational goals with individual or departmental goals,” adds Remillard, “and they don’t help to clarify expectations or create a roadmap for the hiring process.

“Worse, when you define a job in mediocre terms, as most traditional job descriptions do, you tend to attract mediocre candidates. When all you have to interview is mediocre candidates, you end up hiring mediocre people.”

Success Factor Snapshot

The solution to this quagmire, suggest Deutsch and Remillard, is the Success Factor Snapshot™, a powerful hiring tool that breaks down a position’s requirements in terms of specific, measurable deliverables, benchmarks and timetables.

The Success Factor Snapshot™ (or SFS) serves as the cornerstone of the Success Factor Methodology™ (Deutsch’s and Remillard’s trademarked hiring system) and offers several advantages over traditional job descriptions. The SFS:

• Makes it easier to define a position in terms of the candidate you need rather than the skills and experience someone has gained over the years.
• Serves as the foundation for the compelling marketing statement, a description of the job designed to attract top candidates.
• Provides the basis for a scorecard with which to evaluate and compare different candidates.
• Leads to a final, specific set of verification questions to ensure that the candidate being offered the position can actually accomplish the established goals.
• Allows a new hire to start the job knowing exactly what is expected of him or her.
• Provides a vehicle for managing the performance of individual employees and retaining top performers.

biz man riding rocketIn addition, the process of putting together a SFS assists with the recruiting process by prompting hiring managers to think about where to look for top talent. The SFS shapes the structure of the job interview and helps the hiring team focus on what needs to be done. Finally, the SFS provides the substance for core interview questions that ensure a high-quality interview.

“Perhaps most important, the SFS serves as a unifying tool throughout the hiring process,” states Deutsch. “It directly ties the individual goals of the position to the company’s strategic goals, so that you can hire to the specific results and outcomes the position needs to achieve.”

Creating the Success Factor Snapshot™

To create a Success Factor Snapshot™ for a specific position, suggest Deutsch and Remillard, first toss the outdated, generic job description out the window. Then use the SOAR technique to define success for the position:

Substantial goals. Identify the substantial goals you are trying to achieve in the position.
Obstacles. Identify the obstacles standing in the way of accomplishing each substantial goal.
Action. Identify the quantifiable, measurable action items that the person needs to take to accomplish each substantial goal.
Results. Identify the metrics you will use to measure success in the position. In other words, what results are you looking for?

Next, create a Success Factor Snapshot™ (using the SOAR methodology) with four basic steps:

  1. Identify the top departmental goals. Assemble the entire hiring team and, beginning with the annual operating plan, identify the three or four substantial departmental goals (S) that must be accomplished over the next 12 to 18 months in order for the department to achieve its portion of the operating plan.
  2. Identify the obstacles. For each of these goals, define two or three short-term obstacles (O) that must be overcome in order to achieve the goals. Identify specific actions (A) that will be taken to surmount the obstacles, and define measurable, time-based results (R).climbing
  3. Clarify the Success Factor. The SOARs represent the individual Success Factors that, when achieved, ensure the department meets its goals. For each departmental goal, consolidate the SOARs into one coherent statement, which becomes the Success Factor.
  4. Compile the Success Factors. Create a different Success Factor for each key departmental goal and compile them into one Success Factor Snapshot. You now have a clear description of success for the position.

A Picture of Success

What does a Success Factor Snapshot™ look like? Consider the following example for a vice president of operations:

Success Factor 1: Within 12 months, improve on-time deliveries from 90 to 95 percent.
• Within six months, develop and implement a vendor qualifications program that will achieve zero defects and 100 percent on-time deliveries.
• Within three months, improve machine utilization to 98 percent.
• Within three months, implement quality controls and procedures to ensure less than two percent defects.

Success Factor 2: Consolidate plant operations within 18 months.
• Within three months, develop and present to the CEO a plan to consolidate two plants with no down time.
• Within four months, complete a new plant layout that includes work cells for all manufacturing processes.
• Within nine months, have the first cells up and running and producing at levels prior to the move.

Success Factor 3: Reduce manufacturing costs by 10 percent.
• Conduct a SWOT analysis in the first three months and present a plan of action to reduce costs by 10 percent based on this analysis.
• Within six months, reduce machine setup time by 30 percent.
• Identify main drivers of overtime and within six months present a plan that will address these issues and a timeframe to eliminate them.

“Clearly, this looks very different than your typical job description,” notes Deutsch. “With the Success Factor Snapshot™, both you and the candidate know exactly what results are required from the position and what actions must be taken to achieve them. More important, because those results are closely aligned with the company’s most important objectives, achieving them means that everybody wins.”

computer artUltimately, the Success Factor Snapshot not only paints a clear picture of success, it also helps to attract a higher caliber of candidate.

“The underlying principle here is that you get what you define,” concludes Remillard. “If your job descriptions focus on minimum performance (as most do), you will attract people who can only achieve that minimum. In contrast, a compelling Success Factor Snapshot™ will attract those who are driven to achieve clear and challenging descriptions of success.

“In the long run, the number one action you can take to improve your hiring process is to use a Success Factor Snapshot™ to align all of your company’s cascading goals and attract top talent to come work for you.”

Created for Vistage View. Copyright 2014, Vistage International, Inc. All rights reserved.

Vistage International is the world’s largest CEO membership organization, helping executives become better leaders, make better decisions and get better results through a unique combination of peer group meetings, one-to-one coaching, expert workshops and access to “members only” conferences, online best practices and a global network of more than 13,000 executives. Learn more about membership at www.Vistage.com.

Examples of Success Factor Snapshots™ can be found in Deutsch and Remillard’s book, You’re Not the Person I Hired and on their website, www.impacthiringsolutions.com. In addition to the Success Factor Snapshot™ examples, you can also download a template to help create your Success Factors. Barry Deutsch and Brad Remillard of Impact Hiring Solutions are veteran recruiters, national trainers, and hiring coachs to CEOs across the country as well as Vistage International speakers. Impact Hiring Solutions is a hiring portal, training, and hiring systems consulting company. Barry can be contacted at (310)378-4571 or barry@impacthiringsolutions.com and Brad at (949)310-5659 or Brad@impacthiringsolutions.com .

If you would like additional information on this topic or others, please contact your Human Resources department or Lighthouse Consulting Services LLC, 3130 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 550, Santa Monica, CA 90403, (310) 453-6556, dana@lighthouseconsulting.com & our website: www.lighthouseconsulting.com.

Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC provides a variety of services, including in-depth work style assessments for new hires & staff development, team building, interpersonal & communication training, career guidance & transition, conflict management, 360s, workshops, and executive & employee coaching. Other areas of expertise: Executive on boarding for success, leadership training for the 21st century, exploring global options for expanding your business, sales and customer service training and operational productivity improvement.

To order the books, Cracking the Personality Code and Cracking the Business Code, please go to www.lighthouseconsulting.com.

Overcoming Hiring Mistake #2: Superficial Interviewing

By Vistage International, Barry Deutsch and Brad Remillard

The sole purpose of an employment interview is to investigate whether the candidate can succeed in the open position. Uncovering that information requires a rigorous, disciplined interview process that leaves no question unasked and no stone unturned.interview with bizmen

Yet, according to Vistage speakers Barry Deutsch and Brad Remillard, the second most common hiring mistake at the executive level involves just the opposite.

In too many cases, executive hires involve a sloppy, undisciplined process that fails to put candidates under the magnifying glass, verify claims or check facts. And when hiring managers accept at face value everything candidates say during job interviews, a bad hiring decision almost always follows.

“In our workshops and training sessions, we routinely ask executives what percentage of job applicants embellish or exaggerate their accomplishments during the interview,” says Deutsch. “In most cases, we hear a number from 100 to 125 percent, because many candidates embellish more than once.

“Granted, not every job candidate is guilty of what we call ‘interview puffery,’ but it does happen on a regular basis. And unless you take adequate steps to guard against it, you can easily end up with a hiring decision that ends in failure.”

The solution to eliminating candidate puffery and avoiding hiring mistake #2?

Become a great interview detective. And that, suggest Deutsch and Remillard, requires a rigorous three-step process.

Step One: The “Five Key Question” Interview

Through 20 years of experience recruiting and hiring top five percent talent, Deutsch and Remillard have identified five keys traits that are universal predictors of success at the senior executive level. To uncover whether candidates possess these essential traits, ask five key questions:

  1. Can you give me an example of a situation where you have demonstrated high initiative? Initiative is a lifelong pattern, not an anomaly. The top performers will be able to give you example after example.
  2. Would you please give me an example of when you have executed a project or a strategy flawlessly? Top performers don’t make excuses; they do what it takes to get the job done. They hit deadlines, achieve goals and meet budgets in spite of all the problems, bottlenecks, roadblocks and speed bumps that get in the way.
  3. Tell me about your most successful accomplishment in leading a cross-functional team on a major project or initiative? Top performers excel at team leadership. They know how to rally the troops and motivate people (even under difficult circumstances), and will have a minimum of several examples where they have built and led successful teams. “Be sure to insist on examples of cross-functional teams,” advises Remillard, “because strong leadership requires the ability to influence others not directly under your control.”
  4. One of our most critical objectives is <Success Factor/Outcome>. Would you please describe your most comparable accomplishment? Before you extend a high-level job offer, you need to feel confident that the candidate can achieve the Success Factors you’ve outline for the position. Comparative means “similar in scope, size, complexity, resources, budget and timeframe.” (Note: See Overcoming Hiring Mistake #1: Inadequate Job Descriptions for the importance of Success Factors in the hiring process.)
  5. Please walk me through how you would go about achieving <Success Factor> in our environment? This question addresses the candidate’s ability to adapt to your specific situation, environment or timeline. Does he or she understand what’s different in terms of size, scope, teams, people, changes, standards, resources, values and culture? More important, does the candidate ask intelligent questions and problem-solve to answer this question?

“Often, the questions the candidate asks during this discussion are more important and revealing than any statement they make,” says Remillard. “So pay close attention to their questions and the assumptions behind them. The only real wrong answer is ‘The same way I did before.’”

Step Two: Put The Candidate Under the Glass

To validate the candidate’s answers to the five key questions, Deutsch and Remillard recommend the “Magnifying Glass” approach, a technique that involves asking for multiple examples of each answer to make sure the behavior isn’t the exception to the rule.magnify

“Put on your reporter’s hat and ask ‘who, what, when, where and why?’ with several ‘how’ questions thrown in for good measure,” suggests Deutsch. “In other words, ask candidates to describe, in specific terms, who did what, where and when they did it, how they did it and why they did it that way. Then ask for the outcome/results to determine if their approach succeeded.”

Examples of generic magnifying glass questions include:

• Could you give me an example of that?
• Can you be more specific about that?
• Can you give me a bit more information about that?
• What were the most important details about that situation?
• Tell me about another time when you faced a similar situation.

The idea is to gather as many specific details as possible about each key question. To drill down further, ask questions more focused questions, such as:

• What was your role in the project?
• How did you define and measure success?
• Can you give me a few examples of your personal initiative on the project?
• When have you faced a comparable challenge?
• How did you and the team make midcourse corrections?
• What did you learn from this project?
• With the benefit of hindsight, what would you do differently next time?

“Be prepared to spend 15 to 30 minutes exploring the details of each example the candidate gives you,” adds Deutsch. “Keep going until you uncover what you need to know or it become apparent the candidate is being elusive or outright lying, at which point you might as well cut your losses and end the interview.”

Step Three: Homework Assignments

Once you’ve narrowed the candidate pool down to two finalists, it’s time to come up with some homework assignments to observe their thought processes, analytical skills and problem solving capabilities in real time.

According to Deutsch and Remillard, effective homework assignments involve projects of reasonable size and scope that relate to one of the most critical Success Factors listed in your Success Factor Snapshot™. The candidate should be given all the support he or she needs to complete the assignment, and should report back to the interview panel to present his or her results and conclusions based on the homework.

woman at computerExamples of homework assignments include:

  1. Bring in a sales plan/board presentation/financial statement you’ve created in a previous position, present it to the panel and be prepared to discuss it in detail. (Note: never ask candidates to divulge confidential information during a homework assignment.)
  2. Based upon what you know about our company and our needs, create a high-level strategy to address Success Factor X. We will give you access to the personnel and materials you need to complete the assignment.
  3. Take home this set of financial statements and analyze them. When you return, tell us where you see problems and how you would go about fixing them.
  4. Prepare a PowerPoint presentation on how you would begin to approach each Success Factor if you were offered this position.
  5. Outline the steps you would take to crate a vendor qualification program.

“Homework is one of the best ways to assess how a candidate thinks,” points out Remillard. “It also provides useful ancillary information about the candidate’s current work environment, resources, communication capabilities, strategy and planning techniques.

“In addition, some of the most qualified candidates are poor interviewers, while others are great at giving interviews but not so good when it comes to actually tackling problems. Homework levels the playing field and allows every final candidate the chance to demonstrate his or her aptitude and work style in your work environment.”

Some candidates may balk at the homework assignment because they perceive it as unpaid work. However, most top five percent talent, because of their self-motivated nature, will embrace the challenge and jump into the assignment with gusto. Either way, it helps to reassure the candidate that you don’t expect them to come up with the “right answer.” Instead, your goal is to assess their analytical, problem solving and presentation skills in your work environment.

“Successful interviewing is all about drilling down and getting to the facts,” concludes Deutsch. “By asking for example after example, you will discover a critical truth about the interviewing process — that candidates can’t make up false answers quickly enough. They have either done what they say they have done and can describe it in infinite detail, or digging bizmanthey will implode in front of you.

“To ensure that your interviewing process uncovers the information you need to know, ask the five key questions, probe for relevant details and give a meaningful homework assignment. You’ll get a very accurate picture of the candidate’s ability to perform on the job and, more important, you’ll make better hiring decisions.”

Created for Vistage View. Copyright 2014, Vistage International, Inc. All rights reserved.

Vistage International is the world’s largest CEO membership organization, helping executives become better leaders, make better decisions and get better results through a unique combination of peer group meetings, one-to-one coaching, expert workshops and access to “members only” conferences, online best practices and a global network of more than 13,000 executives. Learn more about membership at www.Vistage.com.

More interviewing information can be found in Deutsch and Remillard’s book, You’re Not the Person I Hired and on their website, www.impacthiringsolutions.com. Barry Deutsch and Brad Remillard of Impact Hiring Solutions are veteran recruiters, national trainers, and hiring coaches to CEOs across the country as well as Vistage International speakers. Impact Hiring Solutions is a hiring portal, training, and hiring systems consulting company. Barry can be contacted at (310)378-4571 or barry@impacthiringsolutions.com and Brad at (949)310-5659 or Brad@impacthiringsolutions.com .

If you would like additional information on this topic or others, please contact your Human Resources department or Lighthouse Consulting Services LLC, 3130 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 550, Santa Monica, CA 90403, (310) 453-6556, dana@lighthouseconsulting.com & our website: www.lighthouseconsulting.com.

Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC provides a variety of services, including in-depth work style assessments for new hires & staff development, team building, interpersonal & communication training, career guidance & transition, conflict management, 360s, workshops, and executive & employee coaching. Other areas of expertise: Executive on boarding for success, leadership training for the 21st century, exploring global options for expanding your business, sales and customer service training and operational productivity improvement.

To order the books, Cracking the Personality Code and Cracking the Business Code, please go to www.lighthouseconsulting.com.

 

Six Tips for Holding Successful Meetings with Staff Members

By Helena Ferrari

The following tips for holding successful meetings will help you and help your reporting staff members to succeed when they are most empowered.staff mtg

Regular one to one employee meetings are very important. These meetings set the forum for a communication channel from management to employees, as well as from employees to management. For an employee being informed creates a feeling of involvement and increases the sense of ownership that stimulates productivity.

To maximize the time and productivity of both parties, the meeting works best when it’s organized. This time spent together can be considered a fact finding and an employee empowering session. These are the times that you can work together with your staff member to prepare them to take ownership and empower them to go out and perform.

1. What’s the objective?

The first step is to decide what are you trying to accomplish in these meetings? The goal is important to ascertain before meetings as this goal will focus the staff member towards attainment. This helps to review progress on hitting a project milestone and set the next steps for keeping the project on track.

2. What’s the ideal outcome?

This serves as a reminder especially when it comes to dealing with tough issues which you are seeking a positive result. Sometimes personal emotions take control of the real issue and as a result it is easy to lose sight of the positive goal you are seeking. This forum is a chance to recognize accomplishments, set future direction, and maintain accountability.  For example: If you’re dealing with a situation in which confusion exists, the positive outcome is a plan that provides clear direction.

3. How should the manager prepare?

You may have stimulating questions to ask, information to provide, or something to teach; you may need to give direction or spell out expectations. Sometimes you may need to prepare by reminding yourself to listen and be patient. Whatever the case, come prepared. As part of this exchange it is important to remember that coaching takes place through two-way conversations so try not to dominate the conversation.

4. What should the employee prepare?

In order to get the most out of these meetings you may send some questions or an outline in advance for the areas you would like to cover during the meeting. No matter what plan or agenda you seek for this session it is important to encourage employee participation?

5. How is this meeting valuable to the employee?

Ultimately, you want your employees to drive the one-on-one meetings. You want them to bring to the meeting the issues, challenges, opportunities and ideas to discuss. In essence, the meeting is a two-way street as the employee’s role is to take responsibility; yours is to provide support and add value that helps the employee perform well.

6. What follow-up should be set?

There should be action items for both the manager and staff member before completing the meeting. If the employee discusses issues or opportunities for improvement, he/she should come prepared next time with ideas for possible solutions and even changes that they have already implemented. This enables the employee to take ownership and feel empowered which in turn results in increased productivity and an improved level of persdifferent light bulbsonal responsibility. It is possible that the manager may have to assist with driving some of the exchange of ideas resulting in management action items. Both parties should agree on a list of the deliverables for which the employee and the manager are to report progress in the next meeting. Once you have agreed on the action items, communicate a going forward plan that puts the idea into action or allows the employee to bring proposals into the next meeting.

As the meeting closes, set a follow-up time to check progress. Doing this allows you to stay connected, builds in accountability for the employee, and for you as a manager and shows that you care about the outcome.

Permission is needed from Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC to reproduce any portion provided in this article. © 2014

Helena Ferrari, PHR Director of Human Resources has worked with many businesses globally throughout her twelve-year career as a Human Resources Professional. Through the Human Resources function’s role as a strategic business partner, Helena develops change initiatives and performance enhancing programs that improves organizations competitiveness through people. For more information, contact Helena at hferrariqp@gmail.com.

If you would like additional information on this topic or others, please contact your Human Resources department or Lighthouse Consulting Services LLC, 3130 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 550, Santa Monica, CA 90403, (310) 453-6556, dana@lighthouseconsulting.com & our website: www.lighthouseconsulting.com.

Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC provides a variety of services, including in-depth work style assessments for new hires & staff development, team building, interpersonal & communication training, career guidance & transition, conflict management, 360s, workshops, and executive & employee coaching. Other areas of expertise: Executive on boarding for success, leadership training for the 21st century, exploring global options for expanding your business, sales and customer service training and operational productivity improvement.

To order the books, Cracking the Personality Code and Cracking the Business Code, please go to www.lighthouseconsulting.com.

‘Oh, *%@#!’ When Swear Words Fly in the Workplace

By Vistage International & Craig Weber

Profanity happens.

But, in the workplace, should it?

That’s the crux of an interesting debate that grabbed the attention of the Wall Street Journal.

We asked Vistage speaker, Craig Weber to give us his view of the impact of swearing on productivity. What he had to say may surprise you.arguing heads

“The acceptance of profanity might be costing you more than you think,” says Weber. “Since some people find it offensive, but they’re unlikely to mention that fact for fear of looking weak or wimpy, the outcome can be growing dissatisfaction and sinking commitment. That can quickly translate into lost productivity, as people get distracted and disengage.”

Indeed, permitting profanity might be hurting your bottom line.

Swearing is a great example of the challenge in creating teams today, Weber says.

“Leaders must work with people who have radically different views of what is appropriate and effective. The question becomes: ‘What context do we need to create so everyone can pull together and do good work?” he explains. “And what are the factors that can limit our ability to wholeheartedly pull everyone’s experience, skills and abilities into the business?”

Two Corporate Cultures Accept Swearing

In his consulting practice, Weber finds the acceptance of profanity often characterizes two remarkably different cultures:

1) A laid-back, casual “we’re all in this together” environment

In this setting, using profanity conveys collegiality: “We’re comfortable enough with each other that we can let down our guard. It is a sign of respect. We’re all among friends here. I can let my guard down and show you the real me.” It is understood that swear words never would be used as a verbal weapon against another person.

2) A hard-driving, aggressive environment

Here, profanity is part of the highly charged atmosphere. Swearing may be directed at employees in a derogatory or verbally punishing manner, with the implied message: “We need these words to help get the job done, to express urgency, motivate people, or let them know mistakes are unacceptable.”

While each culture has its justification (or excuse) for supporting workplace profanity, the downside is often invisible but still very real: chances are, some employees are bothered by it and others are deeply offended.

“What makes it hard to manage is its ‘undiscussability’,” explains Weber. “The fact that someone swears like a sailor is frequently ‘undiscussable,’ so feelings are buried. The frustration then comes out in the hallway. People’s commitment levels start to drop, then you, as an employer, begin to pay the price,” Weber explains.

Proactive Leaders Address Issue ‘Head On’

Weber asks the managers and executives he works with to bring issues to him for his corporate leadership consulting. “From front-line managers to very senior executives in 2 peopleFortune 100 companies, I’ve heard concerns about swearing, especially when it’s just one sign of a harsh culture that pushes people out of decision-making and problem solving,” he explains.

If swearing is accepted in your company, Weber recommends handling it proactively to see if an undercurrent of dissatisfaction with profanity is pulling the team apart. You can then make a more informed choice as to whether you want to continue to allow that sort of behavior in the workplace. But to make an informed choice, you have to understand the price you pay for the behavior in the first place.

One way to gain some practical insight is to start with a survey, since employees can answer anonymously.

Questions you might ask:

• Do you think our use of swear words is excessive or gets in the way of our ability to communicate, work together, engage problems or make decisions?

• Have you ever seen it cause a problem with customers, vendors, or anyone outside the company?

• Do you believe swearing contributes something to this company? If so, what?

• Do you find swearing, in-house, to be a plus about your job, a negative, or are you neutral?

• Would you want to change the use of profanity around here? If so, how?

The survey results would be a good start for a meeting on the subject.

A concerned leader could begin the conversation this way: “In our company, (or on our team), sometimes people swear as part of getting the job done. It’s come to my attention that others may find this offensive. So I’d like to begin a conversation about this practice.”

Questions he/she could raise:

• How can we let off steam or have tough discussions around here without resorting to words that some might find offensive?

• What’s the “upside” of swearing?

• What’s the downside? What might it be costing us in terms of lowered commitment, respect and participation?questionmark bush

• Is it worth the risk of upsetting people, or possibly letting the wrong word fly at the wrong moment?

• How can we change our culture so that everyone can contribute and not feel distracted by unnecessary profanity or language?

Putting the profanity “on the table” as an issue will show the leader’s sensitivity to it, for those employees who have felt the matter undiscussable.

If a decision is made to create a “PFZ or profanity-free zone,” Weber has suggestions for how to change this aspect of a communications style.

Breaking the Profanity Habit

If you do choose to make some changes, realize that it is not as easy as flicking a switch. Culture change takes time and effort. Like breaking any pattern of behavior, it can be difficult to learn to curb the tongue in the workplace, if it’s a full-blown habit.

“You won’t realize how strongly you’re addicted to the behavior until you try to change it,” predicts Weber. Change takes practice.

Particularly when swearing is part of a corporate culture more than it is an issue with a few employees, it’s important that the leader of the company talk about it with the staff.

The conversation could begin like this: “I realize we have culture where swearing has been accepted. For some of us, this is no problem. But it might be costing us. Let’s discuss it. I’m more interested in people who disagree with our acceptance of this language, than with those who disagree.”

“By making it discussable, it’s clearer why there should be change, and new rules, and new norms for the team,” Weber says.

man on compassMake sure those who use colorful language understand why it’s important for them to change, and how it might help them with co-workers. “They need to see the price they’ve been paying for using profanity,” explains Weber. “People want to be effective. But they often don’t see how their colorful language limits both their personal effectiveness and that of the team or business. And helping them see that is often all that is needed for them to invest in change. But they’ll never see the need if the issue is undiscussable. That is why addressing the issue head-on is key.”

Techniques that have worked for breaking the profanity habit:

Fines: Charge people $1 each time they commit an act of swearing. Let them know that you will use the collected money for a shared reward at some point.

Hand signals: Agree on a simple hand signal that will remind a worker that they’re over the profanity line. (“But using your middle-finger or crude hand-gesture as the signal doesn’t count,” Weber advises).

Rewards for change: Decide on a way that people can be acknowledged for changing this difficult habit.

Feature success stories: When team members change their language for the better, they might discover a positive outcome from their newfound ways. If they’re willing to share the story of success, let them spread the word about the value of change in a meeting, on an Intranet or via the company newsletter.

“Make sure the group understands that this is a hard habit to break, and that everyone will have to be patient with one another,” Weber says.

Revisit the issue routinely after your “anti-profanity” initiative begins. Ask people in meetings how it’s going. Send occasional emails to let the staff know that you’re paying attention to the issue, and aware of progress. When your culture has shifted to your satisfaction, reflect on the success and celebrate.

Remember: Change happens, but only with a lot more effort than profanity did.  Don’t forget to keep a sense of humor while you increase sensitivity, because the frustration of nice jobtrying to change long-standing habits can trigger the same behavior you’re trying to change:

“ $#@*&!, I just swore again!”

Copyright 2014, Vistage International, Inc. All rights reserved. This article was previously published by Vistage International, the world’s largest CEO membership organization. Learn more at www.vistage.com.

Craig Weber is a founder of The Weber Consulting Group, an alliance that helps managers, teams and executives cultivate actionable competencies for leadership, learning and change. His cogent work focuses on improving the caliber of collaboration as people engage tough, complex, non-routine challenges. He consults internationally to an eclectic wide range of clients and has worked with CEOs, executive teams and thousands of people from all levels and functions of organizations. For more information, you can contact Craig at 661.940.3309 or weberconsulting@earthlink.net.

If you would like additional information on this topic or others, please contact your Human Resources department or Lighthouse Consulting Services LLC, 3130 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 550, Santa Monica, CA 90403, (310) 453-6556, dana@lighthouseconsulting.com & our website: www.lighthouseconsulting.com.

Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC provides a variety of services, including in-depth work style assessments for new hires & staff development, team building, interpersonal & communication training, career guidance & transition, conflict management, 360s, workshops, and executive & employee coaching. Other areas of expertise: Executive on boarding for success, leadership training for the 21st century, exploring global options for expanding your business, sales and customer service training and operational productivity improvement.

To order the books, Cracking the Personality Code and Cracking the Business Code, please go to www.lighthouseconsulting.com.

What You Said Is Not What I Heard: Generational Crosstalk & Why You Should Care

By Karen Arnold and Kevin Williams

John, age 25, text messages Jill, age 45 that he would like to make some changes to the proposal they just completed. Jill sits fuming at her desk thinking, “Who does John think he is sending me a text message to change the proposal? At least he could have had the decency to talkyes no talk to me face-to-face.” What is going on here? Generations pushing each other’s communication hot buttons. In the past – you, as a leader, may have paid little or no attention to the age span of employees working for you. With four generations in the workplace, circumstances have changed.

Some other dramatic changes we will experience are: 1) a globally aging population, 2) increased technology that will change our products and services and how we deliver them, 3) people extending their working careers, but not necessarily staying in their current positions, 4) a significant shortage of employees for the next 7-12 years. These factors add to the complexity of recruiting, retaining and motivating employees.

To better understand the communication disconnects that are occurring in your workplace it is important to recognize why each generation communicates as they do. To help facilitate this understanding, let us review each generation and what influenced them during their formative years.

Traditionalists — Born 1900 to 1945 – Traditionalists have worked longer than any of the other generations. They were influenced by the great depression, which instilled in most members of this generation the ability to live within limited means. They believe in saving for a rainy day and they also believe that you stay with an organization through person with flagthick and thin, and have extreme loyalty to those in leadership positions. Traditionalists are loyal, hardworking, financially conservative and faithful to institutions. This generation is most comfortable with face-to face communication. They are more formal in their communication style than the other three generations.

Quick tips to effectively communicate with Traditionalists – Appreciate information given to them in person. They are very motivated by clear direction given to them by their supervisor. They find emails to be an ineffective mode of communication in most instances. Leadership tips include:

• Acknowledge experience and expertise
• Provide them opportunities to mentor younger employees
• Discuss how their contributions affect the organization
• Focus on the personal touch

Baby Boomers — Born 1946 to 1964 – Influenced by the assassination of President Kennedy, Vietnam and the “Pill”, Baby Boomers have always felt compelled to change the system. Upon entering the work force, Boomers challenged the status quo. As a result, they are responsible for many of the rights and opportunities now taken for granted. peace signBecause of their large numbers, Boomers faced competition from each other for jobs. They all but invented the 60-hour workweek, figuring that long hours and hard work was one way to rise above the pack and get ahead. Their sense of who they are is deeply connected to their career achievements. They are now looking to change their careers and do something else as they move toward, what in the past has been traditional retirement age. Boomers prefer verbal over written communication; call them on the phone rather than sending an email.

Quick tips to effectively communicate with Boomers – While they are most comfortable with face-to-face communication, a phone call is usually preferable to an email. They spent much of their working life without today’s technology and still are most comfortable with face-to-face, phone calls and interoffice memos. They differ from the traditionalists in that they want to be part of the decision-making, not just given direction. Leadership tips include:

• Discuss how they’re making a difference
• Assign challenging projects
• Provide public recognition and perks for performance
• This is the “Sandwich Generation” and you need to support them with their diverse responsibilities

Generation X — Born 1965 to 1980 – Generation X’ers were influenced by divorce rates that tripled when they were children, both parents working and being the first latch key kids. They are technologically savvy, having ushered in the era of video games and personal computers during their formative years. Watching their parents being laid off after years of dedicated service instilled a sense of distrust of institutions. Because they do not expect employer loyalty, Gen X’er’s see no problem changing jobs to advance tv personprofessionally.

In contrast to the Baby Boomers’ overtime work ethic, generation X’ers believe that work is not the most important thing in their lives. They are resourceful and hardworking, but once 5 o’clock hits, they would rather pursue other interests. An X’er is very comfortable communicating with technology such as email and text messaging.
Quick tips to effectively communicate with Generation X – Are used to getting feedback quickly by communicating through emails and text messaging. They want timely communication and feedback and are equally comfortable providing the same to others. One of the common complaints we hear from Generation X’ers is they do not feel they are listened to in the workplace. Leadership tips include:

• Do not micromanage
• Give candid, timely feedback
• Encourage informal, open communication
• Use technology to communicate
• Provide learning opportunities and mentoring

Generation Y — Born 1981 to 1999 – Many in this generation are still in school, but the oldest Y’s are just now entering the work force. This generation has had access to cell phones, pagers and personal computers all their lives. They have also been influenced by watching natural disasters, riots and other tragedies occurring all over the world live and in color right from the comfort of their living room.stress person

Generation Y’s are eager to learn and enjoy questioning things. They are confident and have high self-esteem. They are collaborators and favor teamwork, having functioned in groups in school, organized sports and extracurricular activities from a very young age. They reject the notion that they have to stay within the rigid confines of a job description. Expect them to keep their career options open. Generation Y’s will think nothing of making career changes and/or building parallel careers. If you call them instead of emailing or text messaging them, you are wasting their time. These folks are excellent at multi-tasking, they are most comfortable answering an email while working on a spread sheet and listening to their IPOD.

Quick tips to effectively communicate with Generation Y – This generation has grown up with cell phones, text messaging, emails and live electronic chats. For this generation “My Space” is the modern day version of the community bulletin board or the local hang out (think of Mel’s in American Graffiti). The difference is they are talking to people across the world, not just people across the street. Generation Y’ers are most comfortable with communication they can conduct while taking on two or three other tasks simultaneously. Leadership tips include:

• Provide good supervision and structure
• Communicate clear objectives and expectations
• Emphasize their ability to make a difference
• Use technology to deliver information
• Assign work that is interesting, meaningful, and important
• Assist them with career planning

One-size-fits all communication and leadership is not effective given this new paradigm in the workplace. Both you as an employer and your employees need to understand and value the communication style of each generation. The quick tips provided will assist you effectively communicate and lead each generation.

When facilitating our “Power and Challenge of Four” workshops we are consistently impressed with the fact that most participants are moved by the influences that have shaped the other generations. We also find that participants are willing to modify their style to better meet the needs of others.

The most successful organizations find a way to let every generation be heard. They recognize that no one has all the answers. This appreciation of generational diversity allows each group to contribute and be a part of the growth of the organization. Once leadership understands this, it can help open up communication at all levels of the organization. As we said, this is the first time in American history we have had four generations in the workplace. While this presents challenges, it also presents opportunities to utilize a broad spectrum of skills, abilities, and experiences that can contribute to the overall success of an organization.

Karen Arnold and Kevin Williams, FutureDecisions® LLC, have recognized the need for dramatically different work practices to meet the unique challenges of today’s workplace. To contact Karen and Kevin, call 916-812-6033.

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If you would like additional information on this topic or others, please contact your Human Resources department or Lighthouse Consulting Services LLC, 3130 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 550, Santa Monica, CA 90403, (310) 453-6556, dana@lighthouseconsulting.com & our website: www.lighthouseconsulting.com.

Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC provides a variety of services, including in-depth work style assessments for new hires & staff development, team building, interpersonal & communication training, career guidance & transition, conflict management, 360s, workshops, and executive & employee coaching. Other areas of expertise: Executive on boarding for success, leadership training for the 21st century, exploring global options for expanding your business, sales and customer service training and operational productivity improvement.

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