Out of a meeting to meet people - A new appraoch

A meeting design to make the most of our time!

A few weeks ago I posted on Twitter that I'd had a win with a new meeting approach I'd tested with the OD group I chair. Such was the interest, and feedback from participants, I promised I'd share what it was all about in my first blog for a while (which I hope won't be the last).

The background:

The OD group is made up of volunteers and so it has constantly evolved, and sometimes struggled with attendance as people prioritised other things - like their proper jobs! Also, as chair, I commit to being creative about how we do our meetings so as to model OD themes such as engagement. At the RCP we're recognised by some as a group that gets (the nice, soft) stuff done, but a challenge we often face is not having enough regular input from outside of ourselves and outside of our meetings.

The purpose:

So, my idea was designed to do a few things:

• Do something we'd really not tried already, in the room

• To engage people, external to the group, in what we do

• To make it easier for the members to get OD out of the room, in a way that didn't impact their already limited time in between meetings.

The challenge:

It had to work across multiple sites simultaneously!

The activity in brief:

The thinking how to address these considerations resulted in the 10-3,2,1 activity described below.

Simply put, the group were given

10 mins, to ask

3 questions, in pairs, (so the)

2 people, we're to bring back what they'd learnt to the room to share for

1 minute

Simple enough, yes, but not without thought and the need for a little preparation*.

*Disclaimer: Possibly not even original, though I can honestly say I've not been involved in such a thing before!

The thinking:

The ten minutes was to give people enough time to leave the room and get around our fairly large estate, to find colleagues to talk to. This was purposefully tight as people had to energise quickly or they'd fine themselves at the further ends of the building. Queue the Annika Rice style dash. But I knew some of the nearest teams might be challenging so that was a lesson there!

The three questions were so that people were purposeful and on topic. Thus the questions in themselves had to be clear, relevant and phrased specifically to get quick, useful insights.

Getting people to work in two's meant they were accountable to and supportive of each other. One pair came back and suggested they needed a bodyguard(!) so I can imagine going out alone might have been more of a challenge.

With just one minute to present back, before a plenary looking for themes, the pairs had to work together to agree what the key messages were that they were to bring back.

The learning application:

To do this exercise required people to be willing to do something a little different, to trust the process (and me) to meaningful and to know their way around the place.

The preparation was just the choosing of a meaningful topic, the right questions and documenting them, along with the instructions.

The whole thing was easy enough to act upon, but the purpose and design had to be intentional.

The outcome:

The result was a fun, energised approach to hearing the employee voice in a quick (albeit limited in number) way.

It was certainly enjoyed by the participants who gave great feedback ("I loved it" "Great idea" "Best meeting we've had"), and it was valuable to me in getting feedback on a college project I've been leading on. It also gave food for thought about how/when else the approach could be used... In fact, the CEO has suggested walkabout Wednesdays, and IT and internal communications are thinking of ways they can use it.

Nobody's followed up yet, but watch this space!

Over to you:

If you do (or have done this or similar), how was that for you? If it would help with something you're doing, borrow away but do tell me how it goes!

Thanks for reading,

Denise x

For more:

• Contact me using the 'Contact form' above right
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• Call direct on: 07887 643807
• LinkedIn: Denise Sanderson-Estcourt, FCIPD

Turnover is not your biggest problem...

...But why not?

To give this blog some context, this blog comes at a time when I've just focused on exit interview data and before I dig deep into the results of a recent pulse survey.

However, let me be upfront, this blog is not about providing answers but about seeking them!

I will though, answer it in part.

The thing I feel makes turnover a comparatively small problem is because it falls into the 'you can't do anything about it' box. Once someone has gone, they're well, gone. The question 'why?' at this point is usually too little, too late.

Yes, it's important to understand why and to try and stem the loss of too many good staff (however you define them in your organisation), but I see so much energy focussed on wondering why people leave an organisations that is wasted because it could be spent focussing on the people who remain...
...In fact, had that have been done, we often wouldn't be in the position of losing (usually/often the good!) people in the first place.

I don't know about your experience, but in mine, exit interviews are often full of examples of people who mentally and emotionally checked out long before they resigned because when we did have them they didn't feel heard, valued, sufficiently rewarded and so on.

It's as much a problem, when people are asked to/need to leave (re redundancies for example), as it is when people chose to. We focus on the leaver with outplacement, meetings, consultation and more and not the impact on the 'remainers' (Yes, I know that links to another issue but let's not go there!)

Either way, I don't believe organisations do enough to focus on staff who stay and especially those who stay (for now) and are disgruntled, disengaged, cruising, just doing enough, adding little value, bring no fresh thinking, quiet, staid and so on.

Turnover is, in many ways, a good thing. It can mean you've done a lot right (eg trained someone so they're attractive to someone else), it can mean that you've handled what's not right (enabling someone who doesn't fit to move on), it can lead to fresh thinking, give you a chance to restructure a team, or promote others for example.

Even if turnover is a problem for you, it's a great trigger for reflection, understanding and action (if you use it as such).

But there isn't much of an upside, if any, to those stayers who feel and/act as previously mentioned  - the disgruntled, disengaged, cruising-kind etc.

Whilst I appreciate this may not be a large group in your organisation, I can bet you they're the ones that keep you up at night. And let me be clear, they're not always a/the problem either...
...Imagine if we could harness their frustrations and the ideas they have to make things better?
If you've ever seen "Undercover boss" you'll know the type of thing I mean.

So, here's the question - if I've got a point (and feel free to challenge me if this isn't your experience), why do organisations get dragged into understanding turnover more than paying genuine, regular, hard, consistent, high value focus on those employees we have?

Note: I am not saying no attention is paid to an existing workforce, rather than we just let employee life tick along more often than not. Nor is this a reflection on my workplace as opposed to some general curiosity!

Discussion trigger - Thoughts welcome,
Denise

Wrapping your messages - Internal brand

The brand is not the message, but it matters.

I've been working on an internal branding project and initial presentations have focussed on clarifying why we need it, given that it's a new concept in the organisation. I've found the following useful in explaining it:

Imagine that you've a really nice gift to give... would you choose to wrap it badly in second-hand, flimsy, grimy paper? Highly unlikely.

Now imagine how you'd feel receiving that badly wrapped gift in that shoddy paper, compounded by the fact it's unsuitable for you (or the occasion) eg happy 1st Christmas, green paper... when it's your 21st birthday, it's June and you hate green. Not good right?

I personally think it would be better to give a considered (not necessarily perfect, expensive) gift in especially nice paper as opposed to a nice gift poorly packaged in poor quality paper - at least you'd feel like you were worthy of some effort and you'd have the experience of an 'ooh' moment* when you initially see your wrapped parcel.

Now imagine getting a rubbish gift (by your definition), wrapped stunningly, wonderfully, beautifully in lovely appropriate paper. That's right, it obvious the wrapping doesn't make the gift any better.

And let's not imagine receiving a rubbish present badly wrapped in rubbish wrapping paper!

Would you be excited by a gift that looked like this?

My point (though I'm sure you've already got it!) is...

Internal brand is like good quality wrapping paper... It isn't the gift itself (eg the message) and it isn't pretending to be, but it should make you excited rather than nervous about what you're about to get/hear and reflect the quality of what you're getting into.

So, make sure your internal brand is...

• Authentic - this is key as it has to reflect what the organisation is (or at least what it can demonstrate it is aspiring to be)
• Polished - is it good enough in its own right?
• Appropriate - reflecting the organisation, and for the audience (staff)
• Consistent - in its application, as well as its quality?
• Fluid - can it wrap a range of messages, and evolve?

Let's not forget, a great internal brand isn't going to mask poor(ly managed) messages... but let's remember, a great brand will enhance the experience and perception of who you are and what you have to say. And, your staff deserve that just as much as your customers.

Looks good huh! Wouldn't you be curious about what could be inside?

Does your organisation have an internal brand, and how do you ensure it's the full package?

Denise.

*http://phys.org/news/2014-12-happier-gift.html

Working with people is like gardening!

Today I was answering a colleague about how long I'd stay in one organisation to make a positive difference, why I'm keen on measuring (eg ROI), and why I don't like just like to 'launch and run'. It reminded me that I used to describe myself as a 'gardener'. Now, I'm no gardener but getting people through change, and a whole range of people practices, is often a bit like being one.

Here's why...

First: You have to pick the right place, time and product - don't prepare an area in the shade to place your sunflower!
Next: Prepare the soil - and yes, this might mean digging up the weeds (old ideas)
Then: Plant the seeds (be they ideas or ambassadors)
Next: Water them - in other words, even when it looks like nothing is happening you still have to keep taking action
And even when they're grown, the work continues - even roses need pruning!
Finally: Share - that doesn't mean cutting them but you could invite people to your garden or send them pictures.

In all this, let 'nature' do it's thing - other people's nature will impact things like energy and pace, but remember that you still need to take action.
If you don't do your bit, nature may give you weeds!

Positive change (eg progress, new skills, improved performance) may not bloom immediately. There may be issues along the way - gardening is hard work, but the rewards are there to see.

The same analogy works for recruitment, developing people, having challenging conversations and more.

And don't tell me that you don't do flowers - you could always plant a vegetable garden instead!

Thanks for reading and I look forward to hearing your views,
Denise

For more:

• Contact me using the 'Contact form' above right
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• Call direct on: 07887 643807
• LinkedIn: Denise Sanderson-Estcourt, FCIPD

Where are your hard efforts getting you?

Spinning class or Bike ride?

 or

Whilst stopping (or even slowing down!) doesn't come naturally to me I recently found myself suggeting to a group of managers that they: Stop/slow down, reflect, and thoughtfully respond to matters rather than reacting to them.

So, what's that got to do with 'spinning class or bike ride'? I hear you say!

Well, here's the thing.
Of course, there are similarities between these activities - both are forms of excerise, both have the potential to make you sweat, both involve you taking a seat, both require a cycling motion. But, there is one big difference - only one will actually take you somewhere!

Imho....Sometimes we are so busy, doing so much doing that we actually end up going nowhere (or at least feeling like we're going nowhere) - a bit like being on an excercise bike where you're spinning but staying in the same place.
Whereas, if you're out cycling, there are a wider range of benefits - for example:
- There's a greater focus on the journey, rather than just the activity itself.
- We may see other things happening around us, and can even stop to take them in.
- We're breathing in fresh air on the way (London may be an exception I know!)

A spin class is mainly about working hard, going (nowhere) fast. A cycle ride doesn't necessarily mean going slow - but you can chose and vary the pace; and it is about going somewhere, ideally with purpose*.

This group of managers had been spinning really hard but weren't getting the improvement levels/recognition that their efforts might deserve. There can be so much good stuff going on but because there's no break to communicate until the end, all your efforts might have little reach/impact.

There is a place and a benefit for peddling furiously and building up a sweat (in business terms: when there's a crisis for example) - however, I'd just suggest that if you really want to go places, it's often not the best use of your energy.
*And there's a place for no purpose too, eg when looking for innovation!

So, think about it - right now, do you actually need to...

Think about the destination (vision/aims), the pitstops you may need to make (have a plan), stop at red lights and reflect, look at how far you've come, and ideally enjoy the ride with others. You might even want to get off the road, get on your mobile, and tell everyone what you're doing as you go. (PS - Pictures and/ stories help!)

For the record, despite admitting earlier that slowing down/stopping doesn't come naturally to me, I do practice what I preach when I can and can tell you there really are real benefits to doing it...

• So the questions is:

What approach do you and your organisation take/need to take?
Do you want/need to work up a sweat at a Spinning class or do you want/need to go on a paced, purpose-full Bike ride?


Thanks for reading, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Denise x

For more:

• Contact me using the 'Contact form' above right
• Follow me at: @DamsonHR (Twitter)
• Call direct on: 07887 643807
• LinkedIn: Denise Sanderson-Estcourt, FCIPD

New Years Resolutions and Retention

Ask, Listen, Learn and Act!

If you want to decide where to focus your HR, communication, and engagement attention and energy in the first 90 days of the new year then ask your staff  "What's your new years' resolution?".

We know that many people start thinking about their careers (amongst other things) in a new year, but I'm not suggesting anyone will respond to the the question by boldly stating that they're looking for a new job (though someone might!).

However, there's still something in it and that might help us keep people committed to an organisation and or re-energise/re-engage them.

- Individual resolutions:

If, for example, someone asked me for my resolutions one of them I'd willingly confess to is wanting to blog more. If my employer then helped me achieve that it might be the difference between looking to move on or not. My employer might choose to let me write a blog for the organisation, they might give me projects that would give me subject matter, they might send me on a writing course and more importantly it would mean that they were listening and developing me in a way that was meaningful to me and not just beneficial to them.

An organisation might ask "What's in it for me?" and that would be totally valid. Given the 'blog' example, one practical benefit might be me being better able to write in-house materials (eg a staff newsletter) but more importantly, I'd be more likely to feel heard, engaged with, and supported, by the organisation which can never be a bad thing, even if all it does is highlight a disconnect between my ambitions and options.

- Shared resolutions:

As well as the 'personal' aspects of understanding someone's resolutions, understanding what a commonly held resolution across the organisation (or perhaps a team's) might be, could direct an organisation to look at it's activities, policies and/ benefits.

If the majority of your workforce wanted to get fit and you don't yet have a wellbeing offer - perhaps you could consider this. If the majority wanted to go on a dream holiday - perhaps introducing a policy on sabbaticals might be of value. If the majority want to learn new skills - perhaps a more holistic approach to training, learning and development might be worth considering. If the majority want to 'give more' - a volunteer scheme with a local charity or sponsored activity/event could be considered. On so on!

And don't just ask the question - genuinely listen to the responses, think creatively about the solutions and help your staff monitor the progress. It doesn't have to be formal (in fact I'd suggest against it!).

If you introduce something that might help a group of people achieve their resolutions, don't forget to communicate it widely. And if it's part of the plan for the coming year, communicate that too. People won't necessarily hang on if they're determined to leave, but it's those people who just 'peek' at the new jobs sections in the new year who may decide not to.

In writing this blog I had this flashback:
Some years ago, in a hotel I worked in, an informal conversation with a room attendant lead us to understand she had designs on learning floristry. She was supported by the Head Housekeeper, encouraged to speak to the hotels floral suppliers, sponsored by the hotel, and began to help out with hotel displays. The result: She was promoted later that same year (I believe in part because she was able to bring her external passion and skills into work). Who knows if she'd have left the hotel and become a florist anyway, but had she we'd have lost a good, engaged employee because we'd missed a trick!

Of course, (a) some people make a point of not setting resolutions (does this tell you something?!) and (b) none of this is going to make a difference if bigger issues aren't assessed but... you might just learn some things that help you to retain some people.

So, HR colleagues - who's up for asking the question: "What's your new years resolution?" (and feel free to share yours here too!)

Thanks for reading!

Denise x

For more:

• Contact me using the 'Contact form' above right
• Follow me at: @DamsonHR
• Call direct on: 07887 643807
• LinkedIn: Denise Sanderson-Estcourt, FCIPD

Lessons on a train!

Where I learn.

I recently tweeted that I learn (or am reminded of) a lot, from a HR perspective, on trains. 

The train often provides a contained, out-of-office, legit' in-company-time place for colleagues to talk about issues (assuming their boss isn't travelling with them!)... Good and bad.

Have you, like me, ever found yourself accidentally tuning in a conversation between work colleagues? I don't mean to be nosey but it can be fascinating!

Yesterday travelling back from Leeds I was reminded of a key aspect of employee reward/recognition, based on a gentleman telling his colleague about being 'rewarded' at work.

He'd been chosen for a company award for going the extra mile and being a great team player (apparently!) 

His reward: A meal with other high fliers and his MD.

His response: "I'd rather be in the pub with you lot" (his colleagues).

He told his colleagues that he'd politely declined the invite, making something up to avoid going. He said he was grateful, but it wasn't 'his thing'. "Can you imagine?!" he asked them. They nodded, laughed and moved on to talking about sales. So here's the thing:

The plus: The company had obviously done a good thing in recognising his contribution but... 

... The problem: They'd got it wrong when it came to HOW to recognise it. This team player was being rewarded as an individual. And not as he would have chosen. Oops!

The lesson on the train - If you're going to truly reward an employee, make sure it's what they see as such!

What have you heard or discussed on a train recently, and did it teach/remind you of anything?

Thanks for reading!

Denise x

For more:

• Contact me using the 'Contact form' above right
• Follow me at: @DamsonHR
• Call direct on: 07887 643807
• LinkedIn: Denise Sanderson-Estcourt, FCIPD

PS - This may become a bit of a feature, so apologies in advance if you ever find yourself sitting next to me on a train!

A good staff survey?

Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow!

What your staff survey could be telling you.

In the first instance our survey should be telling you is how your staff feel and how engaged they are.
We all know that to do this part, a staff survey must be meaningful and measurable with clear, relevant questions. We know that staff should be communicated with pre and post a survey, and encouraged to complete it in an engaging rather than forceful way. We also know that it MUST be acted on.

I have lead on countless staff surveys and what is sometimes missing is the why (rather than the what, when and how). Yes, we rightly give staff a voice and assure staff that we will use their feedback to make positive changes - the 'win' for them (if changes actually take place). But what is the win for the organisation given that a staff survey can be costly in terms of time and to some extent money (eg to conduct, communicate, analyse and carry out all the recommendations).

A recent staff survey I worked on focussed heavily on the here and now, with little focus on what had been happening in the organisation and on how people felt it was progressing. The focus on 'the now' was great as a snapshot, but it wasn't alone going to help the organisation plan for the future with an understanding of it's history and progress from a staff perspective.

A good staff survey, in my opinion, should allow the organisation to understand three things:

Where you've been and how far you've travelled (Reflective)
- Some of this will come from comparing historical data, but you can further assess this with questions like what went well and what could we have done better, eg around change; and how things are now compared to the past.

Where you are now (Current)
- How do people feel right now in the moment? And it really is in the moment - a heavy workload can limit open responses and a current issue can very much cloud opinion. (so obviously be careful of the timing of your survey - not always possible if external factors are at play combined with a fixed schedule!). It may with these questions, help to do a benchmarking exercise with others in your sector.

Where you might be headed (Predictive)
- Indicators may come from questions such as: what could we improve, do you see yourself in the organisation in x months time, are you confident in the organisation's plans for xyz. This is especially useful if you don't do interim and/ regular surveys or have regular means of getting feedback.

My tip therefore is to ask at least one of each type of question per section - 

How have we done, how do we do, how should we...?

Knowing all these things in time will actually save the organisation time and money in the longer term. The reflection can tell us what actually worked so we put money in the right place, the current can be used to market the organisation as an employer thus facilitating effective recruitment campaigns and perhaps support on-boarding/reduce turnover, and the predictive can help you review or put plans in place for the future.

Thanks for reading!

Denise x

For more:

• Contact me using the 'Contact form' above right
• Follow me at: @DamsonHR
• Call direct on: 07887 643807
• LinkedIn: Denise Sanderson-Estcourt, FCIPD

Does your 'jobs' page do the job?!

An effective jobs page should be an attraction:

 - Seven tips that will help you connect with potential employees.

You've shortlisted the candidates that can do the job, and before they come to the interview you'd expect them to check out your website to find out more about you. But there's a website stop before this and the question is...

Does your website encourage the right people to apply in the first place? 

Sure there are lots of candidates out there and it's an employers market, but many organisations are competing in the same talent pool.  And yes, the most sought after employees are often headhunted. But, if you're relying on people to find you, you need to be attractive or they'll move on to the next company (possibly your competitors') site.

I was recently asked to review a 'jobs' page as several recruitment drives had been unsuccessful initially (stars were subsequently found I hasten to add!). What I found was a page was designed to simply fill current vacancies rather than engage potential employees and ambassadors. It was also interesting that when I spoke to staff they felt that the jobs page didn't truly reflect their employee experience, which was better than it'd suggested they'd get.

I recommended to them that they saw their 'jobs' page as a way to sell their organisation rather than just advertise a job and that, as well as a source of information, a good 'career' or 'jobs' page should be a platform for long-term connection and engagement.

So, here are seven suggestions that will help make your jobs page work more effectively in terms of attraction:

1. Make it visually attractive: Having lots of same font text and lists isn't really attractive. People are more likely to click on highlighted texts an engaging image than read through lots of words so use photo's, graphics and video. This is also more diversity friendly.
2. Make the 'jobs' page part of the overall organisational brand or at least have strong links to it such as the colour scheme. But also, be creative: you as an employer may be different to you as a supplier - just because you're a serious player in your field doesn't mean you aren't a fun employer, so make the distinction if there is one.
3. Provide interesting information, as well as the obvious. How about including highlights from your staff survey, case studies, or quotes from your employees? However, don't make it up especially if honesty or integrity is one of your values (see point 7!)
4. It's not just 'what' you say, think about how you say it - Use engaging language that 'talks' to the audience. Use 'we', 'you', 'our' for example, don't be cold and blunt, and remember this isn't the place for too much tech' speak either! 
5. Encourage interaction - for example, ask questions and link to your social media. Also, think about how someone with a disability can interact appropriately such as enabling sound rather than just text.
6. Make it easy to navigate - Job hunting is time consuming so provide easy links and make it easy to go back and forth between pages (but avoid having everything crammed in one place - point 1).
7. Talk about the wider organisation in terms of your values so you attract people who share them: Of course people need to know what the job involves, and what the organisation does but often the biggest disconnect in the employer/employee relationship is around values. (Ooh, now there's an idea for another blog!)

Ultimately the page should:

• Engage potential employees - Remember the strongest potential candidate(s) will want to know why they should work for you!
• Inspire people to stay connected with the organisation for when the right opportunity comes up.
• Be something that your existing employees can refer to as a reminder of why they're with you! 

Want to know what a fab site looks like? Here's my example of max'ing the brand and engaging potential employees: http://www.innocentdrinks.co.uk/us/careers 

Get it right* and you'll not just fill vacancies, you'll have people looking out to work for you and employees who are proud to.

(*not on it's own of course!)

Final thought: How do you want people to feel when they look for a job, or more, on your website?!

 

Thanks for reading!

Denise x

For more:

• Contact me using the 'Contact form' above right
• Follow me at: @DamsonHR
• Call direct on: 07887 643807
• LinkedIn: Denise Sanderson-Estcourt, FCIPD