Recruit, Inspire & Retain
|
December 2003
|
|
Ideas for "Marketing" and
Providing "Customer Service" to Current and Potential Employees |
| |
|
|
|
| |
|
| “Is Your Strategic Planning Set?” Invite a TRAINING
SYSTEMS, INC. staff person to your strategic planning. We provide complimentary brainstorming on how to use employee performance to achieve your objectives. Call 800-469-3560 or e-mail
TSI@trainingsys.com. |
|
|
|
SPREAD IT AROUND! Pass this issue along to fellow
employees or customers so they too can benefit from the ideas on
recruiting, inspiring, training, & retaining. You can FORWARD this issue
or print it out. |
|
|
|
|
Did You Get the Employee You Wanted?
You just spent six months and thousands of dollars to hire that new senior
vice president. Here it is a few months out, and you’d like to know if you
got a truly quality person.
On the surface, it might seem impossible to assess something as subjective
as quality in another human being. But an increasing number of companies are
establishing metrics to help them assess both quantitative and qualitative
aspects of a new hire’s performance.
Q12
Measuring the quality of a new employee isn’t easy, nor is it universal.
The 2003 Benchmark Report, a nationwide survey of companies done by
Staffing.org and the Human Capital Metrics Consortium, showed that 30% of
companies measure, but the vast majority of companies still put their faith in
the front end–a rigorous selection process–to ensure that they get a
"quality" employee.
Gerry Crispin is a principal in the international staffing firm MMC Group.
"I think one of the key problems that most corporations face is defining
what quality really means," he says. "Quality is a measure of
‘did I get what I wanted?’ "
Among those that are assessing quality, the systems in place vary from gut
instinct to research-based questionnaires. Experts agree that either the
recruiter or the hiring manager must define quality, establishing some kind of
standard against which to judge the employee.
At Health First, an integrated delivery health-care system in Melbourne,
Florida, senior vice president of human resources Robert Suttles uses the Q12,
a tool from The Gallup Organization that assesses both new managers and
established ones. Q12 questions differentiate highly productive work groups
from others." More than 500 corporations worldwide now use the tool as a
barometer of quality in their workplaces.
Q12 information tells Robert Suttles of Health First how well a manager is
doing in creating the right work environment for her team. Compensation is
partially tied to the results of the survey. "The benefits for us are
enormous," he says. "Where we have high scores, turnover is low, the
group under that manager is more productive, more profitable, and we have
higher customer satisfaction."
Six-month plans
Jim Ellinghausen, vice president and head of worldwide human resources for
Bristol-Myers Squibb in Princeton, New Jersey, says the company measures
quality in its senior people by how well a person has been integrated into the
organization.
First, however, a structured plan is created, with certain deliverables–which
Ellinghausen calls "integration goals"–for the first 3 to 6 months
of that executive’s tenure. For a new head of research and development, for
example, goals might include visiting all his major research sites and meeting
with key members of the executive committee within 6 months. About 90 days
into the hire, the executive meets with his direct reports and talks to them
about who he is and why he joined the company. Then for the next 3 or 4 hours–while
he is out of the room–that group works with facilitators to develop
questions for the executive.
Typical questions developed at that meeting ask what the executive looks
for in his people, how he operates, what his goals for the job are and where
he sees the organization going, Ellinghausen says. "It’s a dialogue
that helps the organization say to this newly hired executive: ‘Here are
things you will need to be aware of to be successful here.’"
A year ago, Bristol-Myers also began to judge the quality of new and
existing executives by looking at 7 core behaviors that tie into the company’s
culture and its pledge to "enhance human life." Six months into
their tenure, new managers are assessed on their previously established
integration goals as well as these core behaviors.
The metrics of caring
At Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co., the quality of a new hire is measured in ways
more warm and fuzzy. The international hotelier has about 28,000 employees and
looks to its customers for guidance. Ongoing surveys ask customers about their
experience in emotional terms: Did they feel cared for? Were greetings warm
and sincere? Did they feel as if they were a guest in someone’s home? The
answers, while appearing subjective, are actually part of "satisfaction
scores" that each department in a Ritz-Carlton hotel receives.
Sue Stephenson, senior vice president of human resources, says the company
uses assessments of customer loyalty to determine the quality of new and
existing employees. Results come back to human resources on a monthly basis by
hotel and department. A housekeeper’s quality, for example, won’t be
judged only on the person’s work ethic or ability to be part of a team.
"We also look at things like caring," says Stephenson.
Results have been "tremendous," she says. Year-to-date,
Ritz-Carlton has achieved "top box"--the top box on the customer
survey, indicating the highest satisfaction level--76.3% of the time.
"That’s up 4% from last year," Stephenson says. "Most hotels
don’t get near that result." Much of that success is attributed to both
the after-hire assessments and a rigorous selection process.
It’s much more common to use rigorous selectivity in hiring than in
after-the-fact assessments. Ritz-Carlton has in place a QSP--"Quality
Selection Process"--that lays out explicitly what is expected of new
hires, so that when they’re assessed, they know on what criteria they will
be judged. "Much of our focus is on the selection process, what talents
they bring to the table," says Stephenson. "For instance, you can’t
teach someone to smile."
Just the beginning
Companies like Bristol-Myers Squibb and Ritz-Carlton are at the forefront
of a trend. The idea that companies should evaluate the quality of new hires
is just beginning to gain a foothold in human resources departments. In an
economy with rising unemployment, where people apply for jobs even if they
know they won’t be a good fit, assessing quality is increasingly important,
says Peter Weddle, a publisher of guides to online job boards. Measuring the
quality of an employee may prove elusive, Weddle says, but you can certainly
measure the impact of a quality employee. "In terms of the work
completed and how well it’s done, you can measure that. It shows how well
that person fits within an organization," he says. "And that’s
what quality is: a measure of how well someone fits."
from Workforce Management
Online, October 2003
 Have
a recruitment, inspiration, training, or retention idea or question? Ask by
clicking the question mark, and we’ll post your idea or question (and the
answer) in Answers & Ideas
on Recruiting, Inspiring, Training, & Retaining Great Employees at
http://www.trainingsys.com. |
Name That Christmas Carol!
The first 10 readers who submit 90% of the correct carols will win a prize.
 1. No Crying He Makes
2. Join the Chorus
3. That Hailed Our Savior’s Birth
4. To Save Us All
5. Gathering Winter Fuel
6. Join the Triumph
7. And Wild and Sweet
8. From Angels Bending
9. Making Spirits Bright
10. Tell Me If You Can
11. And Makes the Nations Prove
12. You Stand in Verdant Beauty
13. Sing in Exultation
14. The Soul Felt its Worth
15. The Everlasting Light
16. Shepherds Quake
17. It Gave Great Light
18. The Running of the Deer
19. My True Love Sent to Me
20. One That Will Open and Shut Her Eyes
21. Westward Leading
22. To You and Your Kin
23. Come Peasant King
24. With Every Christmas Card
25. Everywhere You Go
26. He’ll Say, "Are You Married?"
27. But Have a Lot of Cheer
28. Folks Dressed up like Eskimos
29. On Christmas Day in the Morning
30. Underneath the Mistletoe Last Night
Send your answers to rir@trainingsys.com.
Remember, the 1st 10 readers to answer the most numbers correctly win!)
**TOOL
BOX**
| |
|
| ● |
PowerPoint screen show that features
40 humorous posters that are pre-set to work on
“auto-pilot”. Makes a great “WELCOME” message or enhancement to
your session break. Runs about 5 minutes, and is set to
automatically recycle. You can add in your own slides. (a great
place to slip in your objectives!)
Get your PowerPoint screen show here! |
| |
|
| ● |
BUY PACKS of inspirational posters.
(Do a Product Search for POSTERS, then look for Training Room
Posters (30/pack).) |
| |
|
|
* The Talent Economy magazine interviewed Carolyn B. Thompson
for an article "Learning Your ROIs: When it comes to training and
development there is little question that they are worth the cost." Read
the November 2003 article by Ian Palmer at http://www.talenteconomymag.com.
* Pete Van Dyke, Pastor of Canyon Lake Community Church, e-mailed
after TRAINING
SYSTEMS, INC. helped him turn his annual presentation to the
congregation into a lively story:
"The meeting went very well. Lots of
excitement and enthusiasm. I got the most comments ever about my report –
several even mentioned the effectiveness of moving from a sitting position to a
standing position as you suggested. Thank you for your incredible help. How can
we measure whether or not the message got across?–One way may be by the vote
on the 2004 budget, which was a sizeable increase over last year and for the
first time in this church’s history, by ballot vote, it passed unanimously.
One comment, ‘A vote against the budget would be a vote against Pastor’s
report.’"
Congratulations, Pete!
* Janet Long, PinPoint Mortgage, gave Carolyn the 2004 George W. Bushisms
calendar with the words: "I hope this doesn’t offend you."
Carolyn responded, "George W. pokes fun at his accidental misuse of
language – all leaders should be able to laugh at themselves."
Are You Working With A Genius? — Tips to Happily Get the Most
From Them
In many ways, Atiq Raza was the kind of employee managers dream about. He
held degrees in physics, philosophy, electrical engineering, and material
sciences. His passion for his work -- creating cutting-edge semiconductor
technology for a Silicon Valley start-up -- bordered on the obsessive, and he
regularly worked in the lab 18 hours a day. At the age of 30, Raza was
dauntless, creative, and productive -- a real star.
Yet that same star power also made Raza a manager's nightmare. His ego was
colossal, his behavior temperamental. He had little patience for co-workers
and fought constantly with higher-ups, scorning their lack of technical
knowledge and adherence to procedure. "Managing these people isn't for
everybody," Raza says. "But they're powerful engines. If you harness
their energy and creativity, you have a Ferrari on your hands."
Yet, while nearly all business owners say they're forever on the hunt for
the best and the brightest, few know what to do when confronted with an
actual, bona fide, off-the-charts genius.
A survey by the Center for Creative Leadership, found that a
of high-performing employees lack certain "emotional competencies"
-- such as the ability to build a team or control their emotions in
high-stress situations. The result: Their careers plateau or derail. And much
of the blame, says Kerry A. Bunker, a senior associate at the center, rests
squarely with starstruck bosses, who have little idea how to tame the savage
genius.
How to Happily Get the Most Out of Your Geniuses
1. Treat them as friends & take interest in
their work.
2. Set up reward systems other than managerial advancement.
3. Create internal franchises.
4. Make them in-house consultants.
|
"These types of employees need to believe in the cause,
and in the integrity of the person leading the charge," Raza says.
"They need to understand in their own language how what they do figures
into the larger context of the company."
Raza involves his technical talent in nearly every aspect of the company's
decision-making process. At Raza Foundries, top performers from every
department sit in on at least 80% of high-level business meetings. Human
resources is even instructed to use engineering lingo so procedures and
policies seem more nerd-friendly.
Once you create that environment, Raza says, all you need to do is get out
of the way. And it's vital to keep your own ego in check. "Sometimes even
I only understand 50% of what they say," Raza says. "The important
thing is that you listen."
Detrimental to your genius employees is the practice of rewarding top
performers by giving them more managing responsibility. Many geniuses aren’t
suited for managerial chores but still need to be rewarded for their
contribution. One answer is to create career pathways designed specifically
for your superstar talent.
Another option is to treat them as in-house consultants, who participate in
the decision-making process but have little responsibility for overseeing
others. Yet with some employees, the opposite approach might work. Todd
Duncan, CEO of the Duncan Group, a sales-training consultancy in Duluth, Ga.,
advises managers to give their rainmakers a staff of their own -- creating an
"internal franchise." Give your star a staff and a budget, and let
him loose. The sense of ownership, Duncan says, can be a powerful motivator,
pushing people to modify their behavior and tap their abilities.
Excerpts from Inc. Magazine
article 5/03.
**TOOL BOX**
| |
|
| ● |
Managing Einsteins: Leading High-Tech Workers
in the Digital Age, by Tom Duening |
| |
|
| ● |
Genius Explained,
by Michael Howe |
| |
|
Informal Learning — How Companies Can Capitalize on the Main Way
We Learn
Most of what we learn, we learn from other people -- parents, grandparents,
aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, playmates, cousins, Little Leaguers, Scouts,
school chums, roommates, teammates, classmates, study groups, coaches, bosses,
mentors, colleagues, gossips, co-workers, neighbors, and, eventually, our
children. Sometimes we even learn from teachers and trainers!
At work we learn more in the break room than in the training room. We
discover how to do our jobs through informal learning – observing others,
asking the person in the next cubicle, calling the Help Desk, trial-and-error,
and simply working with people in the know.
|
Formal learning - classes and workshops and online events - is the source
of only 10% to 20% of what we learn at work.
|
Several years ago the late Peter Henschel, then director of
the Institute for Research on Learning, raised the important question on this.
If ¾s of learning in corporations is informal, can we afford to leave it to
chance?
If you agree that the answer to Peter's question is no, here are some
suggestions for organizations seeking to boost results by focusing on informal
learning:
|
Streamline the informal learning process
|
- Supplement self-directed learning with mentors and
experts
- Make the mentors & experts available online
24x7
- Provide time for learning on the job
- Create useful FAQs and knowledge bases to
facilitate discovery
- Keep the knowledge bases current
- Provide places for workers to congregate and learn
- Use smart technology to make it easier to
collaborate and network
|
|
Help workers learn how to improve their learning skills
|
- Explicitly help workers learn how to learn
Inventory ways others have learned subjects
Provide learning coaches/mentors
|
|
Create a supportive organizational culture
|
- Add learning and facilitating learning goals to job
descriptions
Consider learning in the cost of turnover and of
not growing your own
Support innovation (which requires making failure
"okay")
Support participation in professional Communities
of Practice/ListServs
|
|
Excerpts from Jay Cross’ 5/16/03 session at eLearning Forum.
|
**TOOL BOX**
|
|
|
| ● |
Self-Directed Learning, by George Piskurich |
|
|
|
| ●
|
Structured OJT: Unleashing Employee Expertise in the Workplace, by Ronald
Jacobs & Michael James
|
|
|
|
|
Looking to the Future of Employee Retention
Workforce Magazine describes 4 trends that’ll change the way
you retain employees:
1
Employees Have Been Having a Tough Time
Even when the economy eventually recovers, experts say, pervasive
dissatisfaction and anger aren’t likely to evaporate. Only 25% of workers
feel a strong attachment to their employers, and 4 in 10 feel trapped in their
jobs, according to Walker Information, an Indianapolis-based research firm.
Walker vice president Marc Drizin says employee loyalty was on the decline
even before the economy stalled, and that pattern is likely to continue.
"I think most organizations still don’t understand why you need to be
good to your workers," he says. Employers who ignore workplace discontent
run the risk of periodic productivity slumps as skilled staffers depart for
higher-paying positions whenever the labor market surges. Smart companies that
make employees feel valued will gain a crucial competitive edge.
2 You Need Defined Benefit Plans
Attracting the best and brightest employees in the future will become
nearly impossible without a defined benefit plan. Stewart Lawrence, a senior
vice president of The Segal Company in New York, predicts that companies
without retirement plans that provide guaranteed benefits will be passed over
for employers that do. "Employees now understand the volatility of
defined contribution plans and are looking for a balanced program with both
the upside potential of a defined contribution plan and the mitigation of
downside risk of a defined benefit plan," he says.
Major employers such as Microsoft, Wal-Mart, and Cisco Systems currently
don’t offer defined benefit plans because they have been able in recent
years to recruit and retain effectively without them. This will no longer be
true. As the workforce ages and labor shortages increase, Lawrence says,
companies will have to offer retirement plans that provide a floor level of
retirement income.
3 Freelancers & Consulting
Companies need a way to control costs and increase flexibility. Corporate
workplaces will evolve into a continually shifting mix of employees and
freelancers, "to the point where it will become difficult to distinguish
one from the other."
That may lead to profound changes. Company health plans may begin to
disappear, as workers on the move opt for their own portable health coverage,
possibly subsidized by an employer. "Companies may not be hiring people
for jobs," Dan Pink, co-author of Free Agent Nation, says.
"Instead, they may be saying, ‘We definitely want this person around
for 10 years to accomplish these particular tasks, and after that, we’ll
see.’" The concepts of retention and career development, he says, may
be supplanted by an emphasis on maintaining long-term connections to workers
who manage their own rise, moving in and out of corporate positions with
increased freedom.
4 Pay for Wellness Performance
Instead of waiting to pay for the treatment of sick employees, some
employers will soon turn to the concept of wellness management--with a twist.
The process, which is handled through an outside organization to preserve
privacy and HIPAA compliance, begins by having employees and their covered
spouses take a voluntary health-risk appraisal each year. These questionnaires
identify factors that lead to such chronic diseases as asthma, heart disease,
and diabetes, which can account for 20 to 35% of a company’s medical
expenses, Lerche says. If the appraisal identifies 2 or more risk factors that
point to a potential health problem, the employee or spouse is a candidate for
health coaching with a nurse, health educator, dietitian, or exercise
physiologist. The coach sets up a plan for the health risk and keeps track of
the employee’s progress via weekly phone calls. The incentive for the
employee is a reduction in insurance premium payments--$55 instead of $75 per
month, for instance, Lerche says. And if the employee stops participating, the
insurance discount can be suspended until he gets back on track.
"Too much of what we do is a short-term approach," he says.
"50% of disease is ultimately preventable," and this approach can
head off many major health problems.
"It’s for the employer that has low turnover, wants to invest in
employees, and wants to see to it that they’re productive and in good
health" in the working years ahead, Lerche says.
Excerpts from Workforce
Magazine 6/03.
**TOOL BOX**
| |
|
| ● |
Free
Agent Nation, by Dan Pink |
| |
|
| ● |
Trendspotting,
by Richard Laermer |
| |
|
|
Put the
TRAINING SYSTEMS,
INC. site on your
Windows taskbar! Right click blank area of taskbar, select Toolbars/New
Toolbar, in new Toolbar box, enter
http://www.trainingsys.com.
Buy
The Leadership Genius of George W. Bush: 10 Common
Sense Lessons from the Commander-in-Chief
from our
online
TRAINING SYSTEMS,
INC. catalog
or by
e-mailing
TSI@trainingsys.com or calling 800-469-3560.
WWW.TRAININGSYS.COM
Get FREE access to great recruiting, inspiring, training & retaining tips,
ideas & resources where you can:
-
Download
articles for your newsletter!
-
Use free
online assessments!
-
Purchase books, tapes & fun
incentives to help you & your employees be the best!
-
Get new
tips each month on Recruiting, Inspiring, Training, & Retaining great
employees!
-
Click on
links to great managing and training websites!
-
Purchase
our famous inspirational quote posters!
-
Get
answers to your employee recruiting, inspiring, retaining, & training
questions from our experts!
|
Have
a recruitment, inspiration, training, or retention idea or question? Ask
by clicking the question mark, and we’ll post your idea or question (and
the answer) in Answers
& Ideas on Recruiting, Inspiring, Training, & Retaining Great
Employees at
http://www.trainingsys.com. |
|
THINGS
TO DO THIS MONTH/CONFERENCES TO
ATTEND/
WAYS TO VOLUNTEER |
December 7-10, 2003
Workplace Learning Conference, "Advancing Adult Work-Based Learning:
Building a 21st Century Community of Practice", Chicago, IL, http://www.workplace-learning.net
December 8-10, 2003
American Society of Association Executives Management & Technology
Winter Conference, Washington, DC, http://www.asae.org
FEBRUARY 2, 2004
Inspire Your Employees to Excellence Day! Use this day to begin making
your organization so attractive to your employees that they’ll never want to
leave! Sponsored by CBT Recruitment & Retention Consultants, a division of
TRAINING
SYSTEMS, INC. Get ideas by e-mailing TSI@trainingsys.com.
February 23-25, 2004
The 2004 Outsourcing World Summit, Disney’s Yacht & Beach Club
Resorts, Lake Buena Vista, FL, http://www.CorbetAsociates.com/special_invitation
March 1-3, 2004
Training Magazine’s 27th Annual International Training &
Online Learning Conference and Expo, Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta,
GA, http://www.vnulearning.com
March 8-10, 2004
SHRM Employment Law & Legislative Conference, Capital Hilton,
Washington, D.C., http://www.shrm.org/conferences/legislative
March 22-24, 2004
SHRM Global Forum’s 27th Annual Conference & Exposition,
Sheraton Bal Harbour Beach Resort, FL, http://www.shrmglobal.org
SPECIAL HOLIDAY VOLUNTEERING/GIVING
Faith in Action. To locate a group near you log on to http://www.faithinaction.org,
then click on "Find a Local Program".
Gifts that Give Back:
 M.A.C.’s Viva Glam Lipstick Quad ($28, http://www.macaidsfund.org)
go to the M.A.C. AIDs Fund
The Bombay Company’s limited-edition teddy bear ($18, http://wwwbombaycompany.com)
benefits St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Peet’s on
Earth Coffee Sampler ($26, http://www/peets.com)
supports Coffee Kids, Global Education Partnership, and TechnoServe (a group
that teaches entrepreneurial skills to those in developing countries)
UNICEF offers a wide range of goodies (like a fitted tee, $15) to support
humanitarian aid to children in about 160 countries, http://www.unicefusa.org/cards
Organ Donation. For information on transplantation or to learn how to
become a donor, visit http://www.kidney.org
or http://www.childrenskidneydisease.org
 RED DRESS
Women’s Heart Disease Awareness
Pin. Order from http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov.health/hearttruth.
Copyright 2003
TRAINING
SYSTEMS,
INC.
All rights reserved.
**FORWARD
Recruit, Inspire & Retain
TO OTHERS
**GET ISSUES YOU MISSED AT OUR
WEB SITE **ARTICLE
REPRINTS FOR
Recruit, Inspire & Retain
An ideal way to introduce new ideas or stimulate learning with the employees
in your organization. Article reprints can also serve as a powerful
promotional or sales tool - include them with your brochures, newsletters &
media kits. For complete information on article reprints or copyright
permission, call 1-800-469-3560 or e-mail
rir@trainingsys.com
**YOU HAVE UNIQUE, VALUABLE KNOWLEDGE FOR OTHERS
We’d love to print your articles on recruiting, inspiring, training and
retaining employees.
E-mail your article to
rir@trainingsys.com.
|
We’ll be
back next month with more great tips, ideas, success stories, and
information to help you recruit, inspire, train, & retain great employees!
|
Recruit, Inspire &
Retain contains links to web sites
operated by organizations other than
TRAINING
SYSTEMS, INC.
These links are for your convenience and we assume no responsibility
for the content or operations of those sites.
Recruit, Inspire &
Retain is a
free e-zine of TRAINING
SYSTEMS, INC.
Visit us at http://www.trainingsys.com
soon!
|
