When the Student is Ready, the Management Consultant will Appear
By Michelle Malay Carter on October 13, 2008
How often do consultants get paid not to do the client’s work but rather?to act more like athletic coaches?? Coaches get to know their players and their competition.? They help clients build a repertoire of knowledge and skills and then lie-in-wait in order to?suggest the right context within which to use those skills.
What is Our Organization’s Intention within Society?? A Great Question!
I spent some fascinating time with some?executive?clients recently.? After several hours of knotty conversation around clarifying organizational intention within the broader society, it was clear that some?common ground was being uncovered and some forward movement?was being made.?
At that point, I surfaced one of the client’s internal documents that captured the ideas being discussed.
“Yes, yes, this will be very helpful”, said all in the room, including the author of the document with a contented smile and a wink towards me.
A Note to Authors and Speakers – Beware of the Authoric Fantasy
The author had written that document a year earlier, he likely assumed that since he had distributed it, that all his colleagues had read it, internalized it, and were using it to frame their work as he was.?
(I do this often with my blog posts.? I think?once I’ve written something, it need not be repeated because everyone was mesmerized by my compelling argument and surely they committed it to memory and were currently “operationalizing” it in their lives.??But every time?I do repeat myself,?people come?along and say they learned something new.? My Pastor sees this same phenomenon with his Sunday messages.)
Just in Time Documentation
It was clear to me that although the executives in the room had likely read the eloquent document a year before, they were not ready to put it to use until that very moment.??With the?memory of the document’s content having faded, my job as the management consultant was to point that out.
A Job Well Done – No Sarcasm Here
Am I making light of my client or my role that day?? Absolutely not.? Yes, athletic coaches get paid to develop knowledge and skills, but they also spend a great deal of time encouraging their players to use what is already inside.? That was my job that day, and I earned my pay.
Have you ever been paid to use your awareness of the the client’s context and content to point out when they should use what they already have?
Filed Under Corporate Values, Executive Leadership, Strategy | Comments Off on When the Student is Ready, the Management Consultant will Appear
See You on the Other Side…
By Michelle Malay Carter on October 2, 2008
I’m heading off to vacation, attending?a Carolina?Panthers’? football game?on Sunday?followed by 5 days?in a “cabin” in North Georgia.? You judge for yourself based up the photos, will we be “roughing” it?? If your answer is yes, I’ve done something wrong.
?? Be well.
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Filed Under Personal Observation | 2 Comments
HR Can Have Sense of Humor – A Friday Funny
By Michelle Malay Carter on September 25, 2008
Reaching the end of a job interview, the human resources person asked a young applicant fresh out of business school, “And what starting salary are you looking for?”
The applicant said, “In the neighborhood of $200,000 a year, depending on the benefits package.”
The interviewer said, “Well, what would you say to a package of five weeks’ vacation, 14 paid holidays, full medical and dental, company matching retirement fund to 50 percent of your salary, and a company car leased every two years, say, a red sports car?”
The applicant sat up straight and said, “Wow! Are you kidding?”
The?interviewer replied, “Yeah, but you started it.”
Filed Under Talent Management | 2 Comments
Talent Management – What HR Should Have Done
By Michelle Malay Carter on September 23, 2008
In last week’s post, Performance Evaluations, Rating Scales and Fraud, I discussed a manager who had a performance review returned to him from HR. He was told by HR to lower the ratings he gave his stellar employee because, “You can?t rate every line item a 5 out of 5”.?
In other words, he was expected to commit an organizationally-sanctioned form of fraud.? If you’re confused about when to commit fraud, ask HR.
Within a requisite system, the note that came back from HR would have read something like this:
Dear Diligent Manager,
We are pleased to see that you have such a stellar employee in Jane Doe!? When we see employees receiving all 5 ratings on a 5 point scale, we take the opportunity to remind managers and managers-once-removed of some of their accountabilities in the talent management realm.
Turnover Risk and Untapped Resource
When?an employee receives all 5 ratings, it is a strong indication that the employee is capable to perform work at the next higher work level.? Employees working at a level below their current potential capability pose both a great turnover risk and they represent an untapped talent resource.Two Tier Accountability – Managers and Managers-Once-Removed (MoR)
Because managers-once-removed are accountable for the long term career development of their direct reports once removed, we will be reminding your manager that she is accountable to be informed of Jane Does’ current potential capability, expected career progression, and her career aspirations.?Annual Mentoring Discussion Built into the System
We understand that Jane is relatively new to the organization.? If?MoR Susie has not yet had a career mentoring discussion with Jane Doe, as is required at least annually, this review should trigger one because we want to see that Jane remains engaged.MoR Susie is accountable to see that Jane receives the training and experiences she needs to be able to progress at a pace equal to her expected capability progression.? It appears that Jane may be underutilized, and it is imperative for us to know whether she is voluntarily underemployed or whether she is open to promotion.? If she is open to promotion, steps should be taken to prepare her for this by bringing her current applied capability (see glossary) as close to her current potential capability (see glossary) as possible.
Requisite, Reliable, Integrated People Systems Aimed at Fully Tapping Potential
Jane is a valuable resource to this organization, and we are pleased to offer all employees and managers reliable systems and processes to align employee capabilities, gifts, and interests with the work that needs to be done.HR’s Role – Helping Managers Lead, NOT Doing Managerial Leadership Work
Diligent Manager, if you need coaching or training on the purpose or processes of our organization’s people systems, HR would be happy to provide you with that, as we are only as good as our organizations’ managers’ ability to lead.Sincerely,
Your HR Team
A girl can dream, can’t she?? I’m OK.? You’re OK.? Let’s fix the system.?
Filed Under Accountability, Employee Engagement, Executive Leadership, Managerial Leadership, Requisite Organization, Talent Management, Work Levels | Comments Off on Talent Management – What HR Should Have Done
Most Viewed, My Favorites – Mission Minded Management Turns One
By Michelle Malay Carter on September 22, 2008
Mission Minded Management turns one today.?? Thank you for your readership, your support, comments, and link love!
I thought I’d do a mini year in review with links to my top five viewed posts and some of my personal favorites.
Most Viewed Posts
- I Didn’t Say You Stole My Money – Why You Should Deliver Sensitive Messages in Person
- Exceptional Customer Service Flows from Sound Organizational Design
- Innovation Snobbery Is Not Serving Organizations
- Employees Are Babies Throwing Tantrums Says HR, Their Benevolent Caretaker
- Not All Work is Equal – Exploring Work Levels
Some of My Personal Favorites
- Rethinking Accountability – Because the Hog Won’t Butcher Himself
- The Potential in Spotting Potential
- Succession Planning’s Missing Link – Lunch with Your Boss’ Boss
- Systematically Poisoning Employee Engagement
- Leadership by Proxy Causes Low Employee Engagement
- Corporate Collateral Damage – One in Five Employees is Underutilized
- Integrating the Work of the Team -When the Left Hand Disagrees with the Right
- Executives are Spiritual Stewards – Help Me Build a Collective Understanding
I’m OK.? You’re OK.? Let’s fix the system.
Filed Under Requisite Organization | 6 Comments
Office Policies Straight Off the HR Press – A Friday Funny
By Michelle Malay Carter on September 19, 2008
Since I’ve been picking on HR all week…?
Bonus Question:? What values?do these office policies?telegraph?
Dear Valued Employees:
New Office Policies – Effective Immediately
Dress Code:
You are advised to come to work dressed according to your salary.
-If we see you wearing Prada shoes and carrying a Gucci bag, we will assume you are doing well financially and therefore do not need a raise.
-If you dress poorly, you need to learn to manage your money better, so that you may buy nicer clothes, and therefore you do not need a raise.
-If you dress just right, you are right where you need to be and therefore you do not need a raise.
Sick Days:
We will no longer accept a doctor’s statement as proof of sickness. ?If you are able to go to the doctor, you are able to come to work.
Personal Days:
Each employee will receive 104 personal days a year.? They are called Saturdays?and Sundays.
Bereavement Leave:
This is no excuse for missing work.? There is nothing you can do for dead friends, relatives, or co-workers. Every effort should be made to have non-employees attend the funeral arrangements in your place.? In rare cases where employee involvement is necessary, the funeral should be scheduled in the late afternoon.? We will be glad to allow you to work through your lunch hour and subsequently leave one hour early.
Bathroom Breaks:
Entirely too much time is being spent in the toilet.? There is now a strict three-minute time limit in the stalls. ?At the end of three minutes, an alarm will sound, the toilet paper roll will retract, the stall door will open, and a picture will be taken.
After your second offense, your picture will be posted on the company bulletin board under the ‘Chronic Offenders’ category.? Anyone caught smiling in the picture will be sectioned under the company’s mental health policy.
Lunch Break:
-Skinny people get 30 minutes for lunch, as they need to eat more, so they can look healthy.
-Average size people get 15 minutes to eat a balanced meal to maintain their figure.
-Chubby people get 5 minutes, as that’s all the time needed to drink a Slim-Fast.
Thank you for your loyalty to our company. We are here to provide a positive employment experience. Therefore, all questions, comments, concerns, complaints, frustrations, irritations, aggravations, insinuations, allegations, accusations, contemplations, consternation and input should be directed elsewhere.
–Human Resources
Although I am unsure of the original author of this comedic policy, my thanks to E. Forrest Christian of Requisite Writing for passing this along.
Filed Under Corporate Values, Employee Engagement | Comments Off on Office Policies Straight Off the HR Press – A Friday Funny
When is Fraud OK? Ask HR
By Michelle Malay Carter on September 17, 2008
I’m picking on HR this week to make a point about the general lack of systems thinking within organizations, most particularly in the area of “people systems”.
Executive Ignorance is Costly
As I’ve stated before, I think the tarnished reputation of?Human Resources?is a result of a lack of collective consciousness on the part of executive leadership?on how to design and staff strategic HR roles.? Many HR professionals are victims of the broader systems within which they operate as well.
What Values Does the System Telegraph
One of the things I like to do is look at specific operational processes, step back and ask, what values does this telegraph?? A while back, I did this with Jack Welch’s practice of hacking the bottom ranked 10% of GE employees,?and it is one of my most visited posts.
Tying Back to?My Last?Post
In my last post, Performance Evaluations, Rating Scales and Fraud,?I discussed a manager who had a performance review returned to him from HR.? He was told to lower the ratings he gave his employee because, you can’t rate every line item a 5 out of 5.
What Values Does this Telegraph?
We in HR expect you to act with integrity and honesty when it suits the company.? When acting with integrity is judged?(rightly or wrongly) ?to adversely affect the organization, we will expect you to commit fraud.?
If you are in doubt about when you should act with integrity or when you are expected to commit organizationally-approved acts of fraud, please see your HR representative.
I’m OK.? You’re OK.? Let’s fix the system.?
Relatively speaking, the HR Discipline is still in its infancy, and it will become more complex and sophisticated with time.?
I look forward to the day when HR has made the shift from policing and enforcing dysfunctional systems to questioning and ensuring?the comprehensive integrity and efficacy of an organization’s people systems.
Your thoughts?
Filed Under Accountability, Corporate Values, Employee Engagement, Executive Leadership, Managerial Leadership, Requisite Organization, Strategy, Talent Management | 1 Comment
Performance Evaluations, Rating Scales, and Fraud
By Michelle Malay Carter on September 15, 2008
Here is yet another real-life example of how performance evaluations can be a sham and?often do more harm than good.
The Background
My overqualified friend began a new job as a paralegal within a corporate law department several months ago.? Her manager was new to the corporate law environment as well, having come from a law firm.? We’ll call him Lawrence (get it?).
Oh, the Naivety – Welcome to Corporate Life
Lawrence diligently completed my friend’s 3 month review.??After reading?the meaning behind each rating, he rated each line item of my friend’s performance a 5 on a scale of 1-5 with?5 being the highest.
I’m OK.? You’re OK.? Let’s fix the system.
Next, the HR department diligently reviewed the evaluation and returned it to Lawrence, informing him that he would have to change the ratings because no one gets a review like this.
HR – Human Restrictions Department?
So, rather than having a conversation with Lawrence to determine whether the ratings were indeed legitimate, they instead essentially insisted that Lawrence commit fraud and skew his ratings to accommodate an unwritten rule in the system.
Remember, Lawrence is an attorney.? I suspect he’s come to this same conclusion.? I don’t suspect he’ll pursue this to the point where he’ll bite the hand that feeds him.?
Check Your Charater at the Door Please
This is just one more example of how we ask employees to “check their character at the door” in order to keep the peace within?our dysfunctional (and, in this case, illegal) workplace systems.? I’m OK.? You’re OK.? Let’s fix the system.?
Conflicts of Interest Abound
Why do we make our employees choose?? Why must they come home at night feeling like prostitutes?? Day after day, employees contort themselves to fit into broken systems, and they come home to their families damaged.? The answer to employee engagement is not free dry cleaning; it’s requisitely designed systems.
Have you ever been expected to check your character at the door to fit into a system?
Photo Credit:? Eric Skiff
Filed Under Accountability, Corporate Values, Employee Engagement, Executive Leadership, Managerial Leadership, Organization Design, Requisite Organization, Talent Management | 3 Comments
Which Woman Would You Hire? – A Friday Funny
By Michelle Malay Carter on September 12, 2008
I know when assessing candidates, we are supposed to be able to be “objective” and not let outward appearance influence hiring decisions.? Is that humanly possible?? Should the way one presents him/herself have a bearing on their suitability?
Which woman would you prefer to be your management consultant?? Why?
Have some fun Yearbooking Yourself by clicking here.?
Thanks to filmmaker and humanitarian Heidi Mehltretter Sneath over at Sneathspot for the fun idea.
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Filed Under Corporate Values, Personal Observation, Talent Management | 7 Comments
Systematically Disabling 83% of Employees
By Michelle Malay Carter on September 10, 2008
The Good News
Humans are ready, willing, and able to work.? It is a psychological imperative for humans.?? By work I mean, the exercising of judgment and discretion in solving problems and reaching goals.?? Because all work involves judgment and discretion, all work is creative.
We are not all identically interested nor capable of equal work, but we are all ready, willing, and able to work, barring disability.
The Unconsidered Costs Us Dearly
Though individual disability is a reality, we rarely consider systematic disabilities, those caused as a result of the system within which we are working.
Why Engagement Sits at about 20%
PeopleFit research, with over 5,000 data points, points to about 83% of employees having to compensate for at least one?systematic disability.? Often, employees are the victims of multiple systematic disabilities.
Disable:?\dis-‘a-bel\
to make incapable or ineffective.
I’m OK.? You’re OK.? Let’s fix the system.
When we mismatch people to roles, mismatch people to managers, or over or under layer or organizations, we disable people – honest, hardworking, motivated, competent people are made incompetent or ineffective.?
Requisite Organization Design
Because we don’t understand work levels, we are unable to design requisite work enabling organizations.? We are paying a huge price both monetarily and in quality of life.
Squandered Talent
During my 10 years in the corporate world, I worked for 3 organizations, had 12 different job titles, and 7 managers.? Never once was I afforded the opportunity for full engagement, i.e. a role that matched my capability, paired with a manager who could provide me requisite leadership, paired with requisite vertical organizational layering.? I was systematically disabled in every instance.? I suffered.? My managers suffered.? My organizations suffered.? My family suffered.
What a crime of ignorance we are committing upon ourselves.
Have you ever been systematically disabled??
Filed Under Employee Engagement, Executive Leadership, Organization Design, Requisite Organization, Talent Management, Work Levels | 1 Comment
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