29 Apr
What Makes A Good Workplace?
marketang Decision Making

What Makes A Good Workplace?

I believe that working with good people matters because then the work environment is good.
If there is a sense of respect and belief among the people you work with,
that is when good work is done.
—Ranbir Kapoor

We all know the workplace has changed over the past few years and that job openings continue to be close to all-time highs.

Per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 4.4 million Americans quit their jobs and there are 1.8 job openings for every unemployed person. Pretty staggering!

How is your business doing, and what are you doing as a leader to retain or acquire top talent? Employees that are staying at their current place of employment have shared the following reasons for not looking elsewhere:

  1. Integrity is a part of leadership
  2. Leaders are passionate about the company, its direction, and the people
  3. Employees are recognized for the value they provide
  4. Opportunities for growth exists
  5. The pay is competitive
  6. Transparency exists in the workplace
  7. There is a culture where individuals feel valued for the work they do
  8. The job is interesting and challenging
  9. Senior leadership invests time and money into the hiring process (hire hard or manage hard!)
  10. Successes are celebrated
  11. Leaders train, develop, and promote employees from within whenever possible
  12. Overall employees are treated well
  13. They would highly recommend their workplace to others
  14. The work conditions are extremely flexible and favorable
  15. The environment is diverse and equitable
  16. Efforts are made to recognize and prevent burn-out
  17. There are clearly defined roles and expectations

 

  • Does your leadership style support sustaining a desirable workplace?
  • What about for retaining top talent?
  • Do you take the time to understand the “wants” of your team members and ask for their ideas for making the workplace even more desirable?
  • How are you ensuring your team members are feeling valued and not looking to move on? 

Let us know!

Sincerely,

Mike and Jan

I really like doing good work and working with good people –
that’s the thing that drives me.
–Giles Deacon

25 Apr
Why Address Conflict?
marketang Decision Making

Why Address Conflict?

Successful leaders manage conflict; they don’t shy away from it or suppress it . . .
—Ronald Heifetz and Marty Linsky
Addressing conflict in the workplace is a must. Statistics compiled by Pollack Peacebuilding (a provider of workplace conflict management services) indicate that:

  • U.S. employees are engaged in conflict roughly 2.8 hours each week and equated this to $359 billion in loss productivity.

  • In the U.K. it was reported that 38% of employees experience interpersonal conflict in an average work year

Sadly, it was reported that only 40% of employees obtained any training to learn how to address conflict, and for those that did, 95% claim to have benefitted from it and were able to apply what they learned

The top 5 sources of conflict were reported as:

  1. Clashes between personalities or egos
  2. Workplace stress
  3. Too much work without enough support
  4. Poor leadership
  5. Dishonesty or not enough openness
  6. Problems with line managers

Some issues may be resolved between the parties having differences, and other times you as a leader may need to intervene. When that’s required, obtain details, evaluate if the issue is ongoing, and remain neutral. 

Focus on listening, assess what the root cause is, and look for common ground. Once you have obtained information from both parties, bring the two together and discuss how they view the conflict, seek solutions for better collaboration, and agree on next steps.  Based on the magnitude of the conflict, we also suggest having a couple (maybe more) follow-up sessions to ensure progress is being made.

Why address conflict? To improve productivity, build relationships, and increase creativity!  

Sincerely,

Mike and Jan

Dialogue is the most effective way of resolving conflict
— Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama

18 Apr
Workplace Negativity
marketang Decision Making

Workplace Negativity

Negativity breeds negativity.
Have you noticed signs in an array of businesses reminding people to be kind to the staff and that they would be asked to leave if they were at all abusive? We’ve noticed this in doctors’ offices, restaurants, car repair shops, boutiques, and even grocery stores.

What about in your workplace? Have you observed team members, peers, strategic partners, or clients getting “snarky” with one another? Some feel this negative behavior is on the rise, and individuals and organizations alike are being impacted. Examples include:

  • Reduced productivity due to worrying about the incident
  • A decline in commitment and quality of work performed
  • Lack of participation in meetings
  • Frustrations spilling over to customer interactions
  • Increased absenteeism
  • Loss of creativity and collaboration
  • Desire to work alone
  • Quitting their job!

Gary S. Topchik, author of Managing Workplace Negativity, shares that a loss of confidence, control, or community is common when negativity prevails.  He also says it’s a killer of workplace efficiency and provides warning signs to look for:

  • increased customer complaints
  • increased error rates
  • declining work quality
  • increased employee turnover

As leaders we need to model the behaviors we want others to display and immediately address any negativity. The second part isn’t always easy as many interactions occur that we are not part of.  We do need to listen to what’s happening around us; this is increasingly challenging with working remotely so in meetings or during one on one calls pay attention to voices. How’s the energy level sound? If on video calls, how’s the posture? Who’s engaged and who isn’t? Have you observed any changes in work ethics?

Don’t hesitate to follow up and ask individuals how things are going, how things could be improved upon, and if there’s anything you should be made aware of. Don’t be surprised at what you may hear!

Sincerely,

Mike and Jan

There is little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference.
The little difference is attitude.
The big difference is whether its positive or negative.
–W. Clement Stone
12 Apr
marketang Decision Making

9 Development Lessons

Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement,
achievement, and success have no meaning.
–Benjamin Franklin
It may be getting old to hear that we encourage a commitment for continual learning; that what got us to where we are today will not sustain us for “tomorrow”, and that some lessons are timeless?

Success Magazines Commemorative Issue entitled “All Time Best Advise – 1897 to 2022” is a great read. (Matter of fact we encourage reading their publications regularly!). One of the articles called “9 Timeless Personal Development Lessons That Have Persisted For Decades” is worth highlighting. (To obtain the details you’ll need to buy the magazine!).

The 9 points are:
  1. Failure Is A Key Component of Growth
  2. Positive Thinking Is Powerful
  3. Who You Surround Yourself With Matters
  4. Gratitude Is A Game Changer
  5. An Action Plan Is Necessary For Change
  6. Money Matters
  7. Bad Habits Can Break Us
  8. Mental and Physical Health Are Part Of the Big Picture
  9. Connecting To Your Purpose Is Crucial

Are there any that you feel are not important?  Do you agree that:
  • We learn from failure?
  • That our mindset plays a huge role in our ability to succeed?
  • That those we with interact with may impact us both positively and negatively?
  • That acknowledging and being appreciative of our successes matters?
  • That change must include goals, measures, and the “what by when”?
  • That being passionate about what we do is essential, but we must realistically earn a living?
  • That bad habits must be replaced with positive ones for growth to occur?
  • That without good health we will face more challenges and obstacles than normal?
  • That we need a purpose, and that our behaviors and actions must be connected to that purpose?

Certain lessons are indeed timeless!

Sincerely,

Mike and Jan

The journey is never ending. There’s always gonna be growth, improvement, adversity; you just gotta take it all in and do what’s right, continue to grow, continue to live in the moment.
–Antonio Brown
05 Apr
Teamwork Leadership Development
marketang Decision Making

Team Needs

Teamwork is the engine for a high performance work culture.
-Rick Conlow
Can you think of a team that you worked with, where it didn’t really seem like work, where you enjoyed the workday, and where teammates listened to and inspired one another to obtain results?

We’re happy to share that we did experience this; team members shared common goals, the good of the team was viewed higher than that of individuals, and differing opinions were encouraged and debated in a healthy manner resulting in a high-performance work culture.

Sadly, not everyone has had this opportunity.

We’ve shared Patrick Lencioni’s requirements for having a successful team and satisfying team needs, but they are worth sharing again (extracted from his book The Five Dysfunctions Of A Team). 

TRUST – A team needs to be comfortable with being vulnerable with each other about their weaknesses, mistakes, fears, and behaviors.

CONFLICT – A team needs to share their passions and disagree, and challenge and question one another.

COMMITMENT –   A team buys into important decisions (even if they initially disagree) once all ideas and opinions have been considered.

ACCOUNTABILITY –  A team does not rely on their leader to be the primary source of accountability but rather deals with their peers directly.

RESULTS –   Teams that trust one another, engage in conflict, commit to decisions, and hold one another accountable are more likely to put aside their individual needs and focus on what is best for the team as a whole.

We’ve also been told there is a need for inclusion, cohesiveness, and feeling valued.

Do you think your team would agree that their needs were being met? Ask them to be sure!

Sincerely,

Mike and Jan

If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.
–Henry Ford