Cats, Ghosts and Other Scary Stuff

In true Halloween fashion I could not resist using the title to represent the different type of individuals that make a team function (or not function) as the case may be for some of you reading this.

In Patrick Lencioni’s best-selling book, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, he tells us a story about one firm’s executive team struggling with utter dysfunction. Ineffective communication, multiple egos, fear, office politics and judgmental attitudes were all contributing to the absence of dynamics and poor performance. (Sounds like cats, ghosts, well you get the picture)

Have you ever experienced a dysfunctional team in your career?

If yes, you are not alone. Most everyone has either been a part of observed or even faced the challenge of leading a dysfunctional team like the one Lencioni describes. In fact, he says, “Teams, because they are made up of imperfect human beings, are inherently dysfunctional.”

Lencioni’s interrelated model of team dysfunction outlines five areas that prevent success in every team:
• Absence of trust
• Fear of conflict
• Lack of commitment
• Avoidance of accountability
• Inattention to results

But don’t be discouraged. There is hope for all of us experiencing a dysfunctional team. As Lencioni states, “Team building is both possible and remarkably simple. But can also be very painful.” By using assessments as part of your talent management strategy, team leaders can help teams overcome each of these dysfunctions: awareness and communication.

Awareness is more than observation; it is an understanding of what is going on around you. In this case, it is important to be aware of and appreciate the different viewpoints of team members and their work habits, motivators, areas of expertise, mastery in personal skills and motives. Doing so will not only help you build team dynamics, but more importantly increase personal effectiveness so you can accomplish more as a team.

Communication is where it all starts. The importance of open communication simply cannot be overstated as it is fundamental in building trust, managing conflict, gaining commitment, holding accountability and identifying team results. Effective communication involves first understanding your own communication style, understanding others’ communication style and appreciating the differences everyone brings to a team environment.

Teams are, essentially, what drive results. Take a look at the teams you are either in, leading or observing and identify the five areas of dysfunction within your team. What can you do to focus on team building? Whatever the strategy, as Lencioni warns, it will be painful. But the ultimate results will be well worth the challenge.

Keeping Your Talented Managers

Recognizing and developing talent is a constant challenge for any company. Today's challenge is to produce more, and better results with few employees for customers who demand more value-add for less effort and cost.

Do YOU have the talent to meet this challenge?

In his book Good to Great, Jim Collins uses the 'bus' business metaphor. he says great leaders understand three simple truths:

• If you begin with the "Who" rather than the "What," you can more easily adapt to a changing world.
  
• If you have the right people on the bus, the problem of how to motivate them largely goes away.
• If you have the wrong people on the bus, it doesn't matter whether you discover the right direction, you still won't have a great company.
  

Collins maintains executives who ignite the transformations from good to great did not first figure out where to drive the bus, they get the people to take it there. Instead, they first got the people on the bus, (and the wrong people off) and then figured out where to drive it.

Companies regularly fail to recognize the best talent due to a poorly structured approach to management and a lack of identifications of the competencies, skill sets, behaviors, attributes and culture fit required for the positions in their companies.

The following provides an outline for identifying, recognizing and developing talent in business.

1. Benchmark the job. Identify key accountabilities for the position.
   
2. Measure the competencies of the individual in line with the job requirements
   
3. Develop and implement appropriate solutions to bridge the competency gaps.
   

Don't make the mistake of hiring by the heart or by feeling. If you put in place a systematic talent management approach to identifying talent that is right for YOUR organization, you'll be on your way to building a "Good to Great" company and retain your talented managers!

What Gets YOU Out of Bed In the Morning?

I'm talking about motivation. Do you know what motivates your employees to get out of bed in the morning? With Millennials in the workforce, employers are scrambling to "figure them out." What do they like and dislike? What are their goals? What motivates them? But when you attempt to answer these questions, generalization isn't effective. Each person is unique and it is the understanding of what makes them an individual will will make or break your talent management.

For many this new workforce may be hard to communicate with and understand. The differences between the Millennials, the Baby Boomers and everyone in between create struggle for many co-workers. The situation solidifies the increasing need for effective communication in order to ensure positive relationships that will benefit the company. It often takes time to really get to know an employee and discover their true character, yet you may not have much time before they walk down the street to your competition. It doesn't have to be that hard or take that long to understand and appreciate your employees.

Z=mc2 specializes in solutions that uncover the behaviors and motivators that make each individual unique. By understanding your own behaviors and motivators, then appreciating the behaviors and motivators of others, anyone, regardless of their generation, can increase effective communication, making a significant impact on the success of the company.

Ten Strategies to Keep Your Good People

Incorporate the following steps as part of your talent management strategy and you're sure to have employee retention.

1. Set Expectations; have a clear, concise description of the job and the expectations of the person in that job.

2. Move your talented people around the organization, let them experience other jobs in the company and have the company win by using their talents in different ways.

3. Know your talented employees strengths and physical needs. Make sure they have all the tools and knowledge necessary to do the job right.

4. Provide your company strategy up front; make sure you have a system in place for distributing important information to your people.

5. Know what your employees can and will do. Give them the opportunity to do those things every day.

6. Identify key players or high potentials and spend time with them. Provide encouragement publicly and privately.

7. Let managers work with their talented people on a development plan and assume a partnership role with the employee, that way everyone knows what's expected of them.

8. Set up town hall and individual meetings to get to know your people. Reconnect with them often as their needs and wants change.

9. Train managers in productivity coaching; hold them accountable for hiring and developing talent within their units.

10. Teach and train managers in the art of High Touch. People want to be respected, recognized and rewarded for outstanding performance.

Arm Yourself with Succession Planning Initatives Before It's Too Late

We have all heard the hype on the baby boomers and the void they will leave in the workforce. In addition, the growing skills gap and talent shortage leave many organizations concerned about the future. This very concern has fueled a talent war as companies compete for highly skilled executives and superior performers to fill the void.

You don't have to take shelter yet. Succession planning is your best defense if you seize the opportunity to let your best lead the future before it's too late.

Succession planning isn't about replacing the CEO. It is an ongoing process of identifying and developing your current employees so they are ready to acquire key roles when the need arises. Knowing the career goals, behavioral strengths, motivators and personal skills of employees will help you identify the next company executive. Then, implement a leadership development program where your leaders of today are coaching and molding the leaders of tomorrow. Investing in your dedicated employees is a cost effective approach that will avoid the inflated market for top executives and yield long-term results. Succession planning can also lead to employee retention.

What is your long-term approach to battling the war for talent and having a talent management solution? Will you fight on the front-line, or build a succession planning strategy within?

Create a Shared Culture as Part of Your Overall Talent Management Strategy

Health care leaders need to employ patience and persistence if they're going to create a beneficial, shared culture in a growing system.

Consistency
Health care systems with a strong culture ensure that their environment is represented in all of its offices or operations. To achieve this, the organization must apply and measure the same processes, policies and rules throughout the field. If there is a significant variance, then the culture will not be seen as important or a contributing factor to the organization's success. Everyone within a system contributes to its culture, whether through support, neglect or subversion.

Fostering a Connection
Cultural transformation is not something that can be forced on people in a short period of time. Culture influences human behavior and is also a reflection of group behavior. Rules and policies can be implemented or enforced, however culture is how employees think and respond to the surrounding actions and behaviors of managers, customers and others; they are connecting with their environment.

With hospitals having to make compensation decisions influenced by patient satisfaction scores, strict guidelines, working with accreditation agencies and so much more on a daily basis, if the overriding culture isn't strong, the result is a lack of consistency in policy adherence, hospital performance , and patient care. All of these can have a subtle, negative influence.

A shared culture is a very powerful contributor to organizational performance. A culture with an emphasis and reward structure on factors such as customer service, quality, equitable promotions, meritocracy and results will have high employee morale, good attendance, frequent new idea generation and low employee turnover.

There is no simple formula for developing an 'ideal' culture--it needs to be established over time. I have listed the following standards that can contribute to a shared culture:

- A common set of demonstrated values that are important to the organization; its people and its customers.

- A shared understanding, across all levels of the organization, of how the values and culture contribute to the value proposition of the system.

- Consistent use of policies, practices and processes, particularly talent management practices, which reinforce the shared values. Performance measures based on the values are incorporated with performance management criteria, which are in turn integrated with rewards, recognition and promotion criteria.

- Open and frequent communication across the organization as to how the values and culture contribute to organization, team and individuals success (such as outstanding achievement award, results directly related to demonstrated values and so forth)

- Managers at all levels who "practice what is preached."

It takes tremendous synergy on behalf of the managers, employees and customers to create a positive shared culture. Values have to be established and practiced, all communication has to be clear and consistent, and time has to be allowed for everyone to acclimate and contribute. If these steps are taken the desired shared culture will ultimately emerge within the organization.

Four Key Steps to Develop Future Leaders

The changing demographics of our country have been making headlines. As the population ages and baby boomers begin to retire, labor shortages seem imminent and in some cases, potentially catastrophic. Most of the forecasts focus on a dwindling pool of applicants for entry level positions. However, leading edge health care organizations also have to be able to replace key leaders with little interruption to the business.

A number of hospitals and health networks are turning to leadership development and succession planning to help prepare for the talent shortage. This deliberate process develops current team members to the point of being able to replace senior leadership as needed. By thinking ahead and incorporating strategic programs, organizations can keep patient satisfaction high and work-flow smooth even during major transitions.

A large hospital system in Florida recognized a missing piece of the puzzle - individuals who were promoted from within often weren't given the tools to manage others. Their Emerging Leader Program tackles that issue by providing participants with a comprehensive one year program which includes the didactic and clinical, along with a mentor to help them learn how to not only manage others, but also successfully handle their new leadership responsibilities.

They have created a road map that can be used at any level across their organization. The program allows them to develop their own leaders in order to keep their best people.

I have provided four key steps for developing future leaders:

• Development plans should include standardized best practices that everyone is measured by. Employees should know the factors they are being evaluated on and outcomes depending on their performance as an individual and a team. Create the right benchmarks and then evaluate objectively. This can be achieved by having a talent management strategy in place.
• Strong communication skills are essential. Strong performers should know how to run a meeting and have the ability to handle tough conversations.
  
• Be consistent. Agree on measurement standards and let them be known. Employees want consistency, which gives them a chance to be prepared. Once standardized tools are in place, you can evaluate easily and objectively if problems arise.
  
• Hold employee retention meetings for high performers. Discuss the overall goals of the organization and ask what can be done to keep them happy and working for your organization.
  

Despite shifting demographics, organizations have a choice. If they want to thrive on a long-term basis, it is essential to implement strong learning and development efforts for team members. Planning effectively, for the future starts by investing in your current talent now.