Sharlyn J. Lauby's Blog, page 23

How to Use the Meeting After the Meeting to Your Advantage

Estimated reading time: 6 minutes

There was an article recently in The Wall Street Journal titled “How Bosses Can Stop the ‘Meeting After the Meeting’”. It’s an interesting read because 1) The meeting after the meeting does exist. It’s not an urban legend. And 2) I’m not sure if the goal should be to stop it or leverage it?

The meeting after the meeting (or let’s call it the MATM for short) can actually be more important than the original meeting. Many people might view it as a really big gripe session about the meeting. But a true MATM is very important – it often provides insight into the people and discussions that you usually can’t get during the meeting itself.

As a business professional, you want to be included in the MATM. Here are six dynamics to watch for:

#1 The Purpose. Typically, the MATM is part venting and part strategy. Usually, participants are frustrated about something that happened during the meeting (the venting part) and the conversation turns toward brainstorming ways to fix the situation (the strategy part). 

A MATM of only griping? Well, that’s just a gripe session. Not to say a gripe session isn’t noteworthy, but it’s beyond the scope of today’s article. Often gripe sessions are about not communicating something well or not getting proper buy-in. Remember there are only three reasons to have a meeting: communicate information, identify problems, and make decisions. 

#2 The Attendees. From an office politics perspective, the individuals who attend a MATM are usually influencers where this particular matter is concerned. The influencers can change from issue to issue. We’ve talked before about power during meetings and who has power based upon the meeting. In most cases, the influencers are those with the most power.

Something to note: try to notice who initiates the MATM. Figure out if they are the person who ultimately is accountable for this issue (and it appears they’re soliciting feedback) OR are they trying to influence the person who is ultimately accountable?

#3 The Timing. Sometimes the MATM is spontaneous and other times, it’s planned. If the influencers happen to be at the same place together, the original meeting might just turn into a conversation. “Hey, what did you think of yesterday’s meeting?” And the conversation starts.

The other way is that someone might plan to get a group together quietly. For example, I invite a couple people to lunch. Either before or during lunch, I say, “Hey, I’ve been thinking about last week’s meeting and wanted to get your thoughts.”

#4 The Location. Often, but not always, the MATM takes a more casual tone. It might be a midmorning coffee run, lunch, or drinks after work. I’ve seen a lot of people miss the opportunity to participate in a MATM because it sounded like a social event and their opinion is “work is work, and I don’t want to socialize with my co-workers.” 

It can be unfortunate because, if you don’t recognize the signs, then you might miss the opportunity to participate. On the other side, I’ve seen organizers of the MATM intentionally choose a venue knowing certain people wouldn’t attend. For example, Leonard never joins us for happy hour, so let’s meet then. As a side note: this could also be one of the advantages to working onsite – being able to participate in these impromptu meetings. 

This is a tough decision. I can’t tell you the right answer. What I can recommend is don’t be naïve and believe business only happens in office buildings and boardrooms. It happens everywhere – on golf courses, social networking platforms, at coffee shops, and during happy hour.

#5 The Discussion. I mentioned earlier that the MATM can often be a gripe session. If you’re at a MATM, listen carefully to the complaints. Try to understand the frustrations and also why that frustration may or may not have been addressed during the meeting.

The other conversation that happens during a MATM is strategy. What people plan and agree to do next, as a result of the MATM. This can offer valuable insight into what happens behind the scenes in the organization. It can also tell you a lot about the individuals involved and their comfort zones, spheres of influence, and workplace power.

#6 The Commitment. There’s an over quoted line from the 1999 movie starring Brad Pitt and Edward Norton called “Fight Club”: “The first rule of Fight Club is: You do not talk about Fight Club.”

The same rule applies here. What people share in the MATM must be respected. The reason MATMs are important and can work well for organizations is because people let their guard down. They talk about what challenges them and they might share something they plan to do. Unless your role in the organization is to go forewarn someone, then you have to respect the tradition of this meeting.

Instead of trying to eradicate the meeting after the meeting, find a way to play a positive role in them. As an HR pro, I found that, when I was being invited to the MATM, it was to help the group in a specific way.

To clarify something. Someone at the meeting didn’t understand something that happened. Instead of asking during the meeting, they might choose to wait until after and ask some questions. They might also choose to ask someone other than their boss or the meeting leader. 

This can occur a lot with new supervisors and managers, especially when they haven’t had prior exposure to these types of meetings. They need to learn from someone they can trust. This is the part of business that never shows up in the employee handbook or in a training program. Years ago, I had a boss tell me, “Over the years, with each job, I learned a little bit about human resources and a whole lot about office politics.” That line stuck with me. It’s part of my job to share the realities of the workplace with others. 

To be a sounding board. Participants want to say something, but they don’t know how their comments will be received. They are looking for someone to offer a different perspective. Not approval or support, only a point of view. 

This relates to my comment about sharing the realities of work. Books, articles, and media will tell you it’s important to be open, honest, and share with your boss. This is totally true and I completely agree with it. This doesn’t mean you should be unprepared. Having a sounding board gets you prepared. If you choose the right person, they can help you to potentially see a different point of view.

Bottom line, I’m not sure you can eliminate the meeting after the meeting. But you can position yourself to be a positive influence in the conversation. Pay attention to what’s happening around you. They will help you get a seat at the meeting after the meeting.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Miami, FL

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The Importance of Backup Business Plans

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

I mentioned a few months ago that I switched planners this year and I’m using a Hobonichi Techo. Absolutely love it. When I first started using it, I joined some communities to learn how others were using their planners and get some overall ideas of how to make the most of it. Fortunately (and unfortunately), I learned about washi tape as a way to both decorate and organize. 

The reason I’m sharing this story is because a while back, I ordered some washi tape from a small business. The product was lovely, that wasn’t an issue. It did take a while to get my order because the owner had a family member take ill and they had to shut down their company to take care of the family member. I’m not chastising this person for taking care of a family member. That’s a priority. However, it does highlight a challenge that small businesses face – not being able to run the company when an emergency happens. 

This can also be an issue for larger organizations. A department might have a small team and one person has an emergency. It becomes a challenge for the team to operate at 100%. Oh sure, they might be able to do it for a few days but it’s not a long-term sustainable plan. Employees will get stressed and burned out. Meanwhile, the work keeps piling up. 

That’s why it’s important to think about backup business plans. And the time to think about them is when you don’t need them. 

Identify the challenges your organization might face. I wrote an article for The UKG Workforce Institute a few months ago about “Using the PAPA Model to Manage Risk”. This model allows you to identify the risks you might face like injuries, accidents, weather disasters, emergencies, etc. and the likelihood that they might happen. 

Once you identify the risks, think about how you would mitigate them. For example, let’s say a key member of the team gets sick or has a personal emergency they need to deal with. We want to be supportive, so they’re not available. Is there anyone else in the organization that has been cross trained to handle things? Or is there someone we can delegate the work to like a freelancer or contractor? 

Put training programs in place. Cross training can be valuable when employees need to take care of an emergency. But cross training takes time. Also, because people might forget when they don’t do something for a long period of time, it could make some business sense to have individuals who are crossed trained do the work when someone goes on vacation. Great way to make sure they keep their skills current and the person on vacation doesn’t come back to a pile of work. 

Learn how to delegate. In addition to cross training, organizations need to ensure that teams can function if the team leader has to step away to take care of an emergency. I’ve seen teams – and I’m sure you have too – that have to get everything approved by a manager before they can do something. Even though they know what to do. 

No one wants to deal with an emergency. But sometimes we have to. It’s very comforting to know when we do need to shift our attention that the organization will run without us. Having a team that knows what to do does not make us dispensable. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. Training and developing a team who can handle emergencies makes us even more indispensable. 

Start thinking about your backup business plans early. Put action steps in place to get them ready.

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Labor Law Postings: 4 Key Elements of an Effective Strategy

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

(Editor’s Note: Today’s article is brought to you by  our friends at Poster Guard® Poster Compliance Service from HRdirect , the leading labor law poster service that gets your business up to date with all the required federal, state, and local labor law postings, and then keeps it that way – for an entire year. Enjoy the article!)

While most employers know they need to have labor law postings, I can see organizations forgetting to take the extra caution necessary when it comes to unique employee groups, different industries, and employee handouts.

As HR professionals, compliance is a key part of our roles. That doesn’t mean it needs to consume the majority of our time. We need to have a complete compliance strategy that allows us to be proactive versus reactive. So, let’s discuss the four key elements in a labor law posting compliance strategy. 

Understand the purpose of labor law postings. The reason employers are required to display labor law postings is to inform employees of their legal rights and responsibilities under federal, state, and local laws. Organizations that are only focused on federal and state postings aren’t doing enough. For example, did you know that Denver, Miami Beach, and Tucson all require anti-discrimination postings? They do.

Labor law postings aren’t some dreamt up form of government punishment. They provide education to employees and that shows the organization cares about their wellbeing, which leads to employee engagement and retention. Don’t minimize how simple acts that demonstrate caring through employee education can provide value. Organizations should treat labor law posters as such.

Communicate to the entire organization. I’d like to think it’s pretty obvious that if you have multiple locations then you need multiple sets of posters. But also think about your strategy if you have a large, single location. Is there someplace that you can guarantee every employee will walk by, and see? And what about remote workers? Remember #1. The purpose of labor law postings is to educate employees, which means remote workers need to see them as well.  

When it comes to employee communication, displaying only one set of posters may not be probably isn’t won’t be enough. Organizations will want to be strategic about posting locations. Look for places where employees tend to hang out or gather so the company is ensured they can be viewed by employees throughout the workday. 

Update continuously. Labor law posting changes happen all the time. Not just in January. According to Lillian Chavez, Esq., managing legal research attorney at ComplyRight, there are on average more than 200 mandatory state/city/county posting changes a year requiring an immediate poster update or replacement. If you’re only updating postings once a year, then it’s possible probable that you’re not in compliance. 

This ties into points #1 and #2. Not only do organizations want to make sure that everyone knows their legal rights, but they need to know them in a timely manner. Telling an employee that their rights changed months ago doesn’t send the message that the organization cares about them or being compliant. And I’ll say what we all know employees are thinking…if the company isn’t doing compliance activities like labor law postings, what other compliance requirement aren’t they doing?  

Use HR’s time strategically. There are 175 different government agencies nationwide that are responsible for over 500 mandatory posters. Sure, you can monitor all the relevant agencies for changes and request free posters. That takes time. A lot of time. I don’t know about you, but that’s not how I want to spend my time. If I have to choose between spending an hour monitoring for free labor law posters or coaching a manager on how to get better performance from an employee, I know which one I’ll be doing.

Now of course, I get it. Those downloads from agencies are free. I don’t have anything against free. I like free. But there are some things that even when you can get them for free, it’s not worth paying for. You know what I’m saying. Be smart about how you spend your valuable time.

The good news is having a labor law posting compliance strategy doesn’t have to be complex. Organizations can partner with outside services that will handle the heavy lifting for you. Our friends at Poster Guard have a Labor Law Poster Service that does just that. Yep, that’s right. Poster Guard monitors labor law requirements (at the federal, state, and local levels) and lets you know when things change. They also provide you with replacement posters every time there’s a mandatory change FREE of charge!

As you’re starting 2024, think about how you want to spend your time. How can HR create the most value for the organization? Planning now will save your time and money in the year ahead.

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Transparency Is an Important Part of the Employee Experience

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

I saw this headline recently on CNBC – “Over half of employees have no idea how their companies are using AI”. We know AI (artificial intelligence) is a regular headline in today’s news. This article shared the results of a survey that said:

Companies estimate that 70% of their workforce will use AI by 2028.75% of employees would be more excited about AI if the company was more transparent about how the technology is being used.54% of employees have no idea how their company is using AI.

Honestly, I don’t understand. In three years, companies anticipate that 70% of their workforce will use AI. 75% of employees would be excited about AI if they knew what was going on. And 54% have no idea what’s going on.

This is exactly why organizations need to develop an artificial intelligence strategy. That strategy needs to include a communications strategy, so employees know what’s going on with their work and AI. And this is why human resources needs to be a part of the artificial intelligence conversation. Because AI is going to become a part of the employee experience if it’s not already.    

But I think there’s another aspect to this conversation that should be mentioned. The article I mentioned in the intro is about artificial intelligence and AI is all the talk right now. How many other organizational issues are like it? Does this sound familiar at an organization you know?

Organization plans on implementing a new strategy.Employees would be thrilled to help the company achieve this strategy.Employees have no idea what’s going on.  

Organizations need to remember that transparency is an important part of the employee experience. I know transparency became a buzzword a few years ago, but the concept is still relevant. Managers can’t manage when they don’t know what’s going on. Employees can’t help the company achieve their goals if they don’t know what’s going on. 

Here’s a small-scale example. The other day, I received a marketing email from one of our favorite restaurants. They were having a sale on their “grab and go” items. It was a terrific deal, so Mr. Bartender and I decided to stop by. Obviously, we weren’t the only people who got the email, because there was a line of people wanting to take advantage of the deal as well. The employees had no clue the email had been sent and didn’t know how to ring up the sale items on their register. Luckily everything got worked out. But when customers are trying to spend money, you want employees to be ready and know how to take that money. 

Now, I do understand that sometimes business ideas in their early stages have to stay with a small group of people. I think employees understand that too. Not what we’re talking about here. Today’s conversation is about not finding the time to tell employees the vision of the organization and when there are changes to the vision.  

If organizations want to make money – and we all know they do – then they have to put the infrastructure in place for that to happen. This includes keeping managers and employees in the loop so they can make products and take care of customers. Maybe instead of looking at transparency and communication as something special, make it a regular part of the employee experience. Because that’s exactly where it belongs. 

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Create Effective Organizational Change Through Leadership Development

Estimated reading time: 6 minutes

(Editor’s Note: Today’s article is brought to you by  our friends at DDI , a global leadership firm that helps organizations hire, promote, and develop exceptional leaders. They were recently named to the  Forbes America’s Best Employers 2024 list .  Congrats to them and enjoy the read!)

There are two types of organizational change. There’s the big sweeping transformational change that impacts everyone and everything in the organization. And there are the small incremental changes that impact individuals and teams. Both are important but today I want to talk about the latter. 

The reason I want to focus on small incremental changes is because they can be a precursor to successfully managing a large-scale transformation. Let’s face it, can you really expect transformational change from an organization that can’t effectively manage small daily changes?

The bottom line is that change happens all the time. And change can be hard. Even when the change is welcome, it still can be hard. It is critical for organizations to prepare their leaders, employees, and teams to effectively handle change. 

In our mini-series about team management, we’ve talked about welcoming new team members and how to create team engagement. In this article, I’d like to explore how organizations can prepare leaders for three common types of change.

Before we start talking about the types of change, one thing to remember. When we talk about teams, we’re not just referring to departments or divisions within an organization. Other teams in the organization could be a committee or group that meets regularly, like the safety committee or an employee resource group (ERG). These ideas could also apply to temporary teams such as a project implementation team. 

Change #1 – Team leader changes. 

Teams may experience a change in team leadership, either because someone is leaving the organization, or the leader received a promotion, transfer, or job change. For temporary teams, an individual may lead the team for a year and then hand responsibilities off to someone else. 

One example is employee resource groups (ERGs). The team leader might not drive the group’s direction per se, but rather act as a project manager and point person. ERG team leads may change based on organizational or employee priorities. 

Whether you’re an outgoing or incoming team leader, handling the transition well is important to the success of the team. There are three things to focus on during the transition:

Building trust. Outgoing leaders have the trust of the current team. They need to set the stage for the incoming leader to build trust. Incoming leaders will want to focus on building relationships with their new team and that starts with trust. Listening. Incoming leaders often have lots of new ideas, and that’s great, but they need to listen and build trust before announcing changes. Outgoing leaders (especially ones staying in the organization) will want to listen and be open minded to the changes planned for the team. It’s often not a reflection of them doing anything wrong. Showing empathy. Both outgoing and incoming leaders need to remember what it was like when they faced a change with who they reported to. Employees expect their leaders to support them during this time of change. 

Team leader changes are a fact of business and an ideal time to discuss this type of change is during leadership development programs. 

Change #2 – Scope of work changes.

Scope of work changes do happen, and temporary teams face scope of work changes all the time. Let me share a couple of personal examples to illustrate. 

In one of my in-house human resources roles, we were asked to take responsibility for payroll. Later in that same role, we were asked to take responsibility for security. Everyone in the organization interacts with these three departments, and they were being combined. Not only did we have new team members, but we had new work responsibilities. 

An example of a temporary team change involved a consulting project I once worked on where the team was originally brought together to address recruiting issues. But after some assessment of the situation, we realized the issue was training related, so the scope of work for the team changed. 

If teams are facing a scope of work change, they need to understand the reason why. Team leaders should take on the responsibility of sharing rationales with their teams.  I’ve always found that even if team members don’t like or agree with a change decision … if they understand it, that’s a huge step toward reducing resistance and creating change management success.

Just saying, “Well, senior management said so.” isn’t a valid reason. Even if it’s the truth. It’s okay to say that the organization is making changes to reduce expenses. Or to say that the change is to reduce organizational bureaucracy and redundancy.  Sharing thoughts, feelings, and rationale behind decisions will go a long way in building trust.

A leadership development program can prepare leaders for these conversations because it’s important for leaders to become effective in delivering change related messages, especially if the message could be mixed. 

Change #3 – Team member changes.

The third type of team change that happens is when members of the team change. Like the team leader scenario (#1), it could be because someone is leaving the organization. Or because they’ve been promoted, transferred, or have a job change. 

It could also be because the scope of work for the team is changing (#2). For example, I mentioned the story above where I was working on a consulting team that was originally hired to address a recruiting issue. Then we identified the issue as training. Well, the people on the team with training experience stayed to continue work on the project. The people with only recruiting experience transitioned off the team. No one did anything wrong, the scope of work for the team was simply changing.

Like with a team leader change, it’s important to give employees a proper transition. 

As with a new employee, leaders should prepare an onboarding plan for internal employees who are promoted or changing roles – including:

Training customized for their role, skills, and experiences Learning goals for the first 30, 60, and 90 daysAmple time for learning and practiceOpportunities to provide feedback

Leadership development programs can not only prepare your leaders to get their team members started on the right foot but engage and retain them in the long term.

Leadership Development Programs Provide the Tools Leaders Need to Manage Change

The key to successfully managing any type of change starts with leaders. Organizations should give leaders the training and tools they need to manage change at every level. And that happens during leadership development. In turn, proper development will allow the leader to provide support to employees. 

If you want to learn more about what it takes to lead change, be on the lookout for our next article. For a sneak preview of the themes we’ll cover, check out this episode of the Leadership 480 Podcast on “How Leaders Can Drive Change Effectively” with Verity Creedy, vice president of product management at DDI.

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All Artificial Intelligence Is Not the Same

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

A few months ago, we published an article about whether it’s okay for job seekers to use artificial intelligence to get help with their job search. I hope you’ll check it out. The reason I wrote the article is because recruiters were saying that they can tell when someone is using artificial intelligence (AI) to write their resume. And the question becomes, does that really matter? Organizations are hiring people based on their skills and abilities, not their resume format. 

Well, a new conversation has emerged in the use of AI, and this involves photos. I’ve seen several recruiters saying that they can tell when someone uses an AI generated image for their headshot. This started some interesting discussion (again!) about whether it matters because from a recruiting perspective, organizations should not be using physical appearance as part of their hiring standards. This could be considered a bias and/or discriminatory. If you have questions about this topic, you should reach out to your friendly employment attorney and get answers to your questions.

However, the conversation about AI generated images did make me wonder so I decided to do an experiment. I prompted two different artificial intelligence programs to generate an image of me. Here are the results:

The image in the middle is me. No filter. Taken by Mr. Bartender.The image on the left was generated by ChatGPT.The image on the right was generated by Google Bard (now being rebranded as Gemini).

The purpose of this exercise wasn’t to find a new headshot to use for professional purposes. Honestly, I wouldn’t use either of them. What was interesting to me was how different they were – even though we asked them both the same thing. It made me realize that all artificial intelligence is not the same. 

Take this to an organizational level. As companies start to think about their artificial intelligence strategy, they have to consider:

Are we going to use AI? If so, when should we start using AI? What types of things should we use AI for? 

And here’s a new question for the list: What AI software is best for us? Because depending on which artificial intelligence program you use, the results could be very different. Just like these two images of me are very different. 

This was a really fascinating experiment. If you’re playing around with AI, you might want to try it and evaluate the results. I still believe the best way to learn about the capabilities of AI can be through conducting these types of experiments. Start small and then as you learn more, make them more complex. These experiments make us more aware so as we’re thinking about our personal and professional use of artificial intelligence, we can ask smarter questions. Better questions will lead to better outcomes. 

New technologies will continue to be introduced and that’s a good thing. We have to find ways to learn about them.

Image created by DALL E when prompted by Sharlyn Lauby to illustrate ChatGPT artificial intelligence as an avatar.

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Want Older Workers to Stay? Make Them Feel Included

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

I’ve been seeing some articles lately about the value in hiring, engaging, and retaining older workers. That’s great. Statistically, the U.S. has more job openings than job seekers. Some of this is because there are more people exiting the workforce than entering. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has a nice overview titled “Understanding America’s Labor Shortage” which goes into the reasons that we’re in this situation. 

Because we’re facing a labor shortage, organizations might want to think about how to keep older workers in the workforce longer. Some older workers are open to the idea of retiring later. But – and this is a huge but – organizations have to create workplaces where older workers feel included. 

There was an article in a recent issue of HR Magazine talking about the things that older workers are looking for when it comes to work. Here are a few topics mentioned:

Well-designed work. Employees want to understand how their work contributes to the organization’s mission, vision, and values. This is the foundation for employee engagement. When employees can tell their friends or family, “I do ABC and it helps our customers do XYZ.”, they can see how the work they do helps the company and its customers. That means designing jobs that are well-thought out and connect workers to the organization. 

Flexible benefits. I’d like to think that organizations realize employee benefits are important. What’s becoming increasingly important is the ability to pick and choose benefits that align with an employee’s lifestyle. Specifically, when it comes to older workers, maybe they have healthcare coverage through Medicare but would like to have dental, vision, and hearing coverages. Creating flexible benefits plans will show employees that the organization cares. 

Scheduling flexibility. Speaking of flexibility, if the past few years haven’t taught us anything it’s that employees want flexible work. For older workers, that might include flexible scheduling, reduced hours, job sharing, and a defined phased retirement program. It’s time for organizations to get comfortable with openly talking about exit strategies with employees. Not in a “let’s push someone out the door” kinda way but rather “let’s talk about creating a win for both of us”. 

Training. Don’t assume that as people get older, they aren’t interested in learning new skills. For instance, some people might welcome the opportunity to learn a new software. Not only does it help them with their work, but it gives them the confidence to learn other software programs. And the training conversation also can include giving older workers the opportunity to mentor others. A valuable way to share organizational history, etc. 

Some of you might be saying, “Hey! This list sounds like things that all employees would like – good jobs, flexible benefits, scheduling flexibility, and training.” And you would be right. That’s what makes this a nice list. Organizations aren’t creating a separate set of programs just for older workers. The goal is to create an employee experience that gives employees what they need when they need it. 

It’s worth mentioning that if an organization does create an inclusive employee experience for workers of all ages – everyone will see it and that becomes a retention tool. People can work for an organization that takes care of their employees, regardless of their age.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Gainesville, FL

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How to Identify Your Most Productive Work Environment

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

There’s still a lot of talk about remote, hybrid, and onsite work. On some level, that’s great because it’s encouraging a conversation about the best way to get things done. But where an employee works is only one aspect of overall performance. 

Today, I want to share an activity that could be helpful in identifying an employee’s most productive work environment. If you’re a manager, you might want to encourage employees to do this exercise. If you’re an employee, you should do it and evaluate your results. 

STEP ONE. Identify a time when you felt your most productive. Don’t just say “in my last job” or “last year”. Write down specifically what made it that way. Where did you work? Who was your manager? What were your co-workers like? What kind of training and support did you receive?

STEP TWO. Now do the opposite. Identify a time when you’ve felt your least productive. Resist the temptation to say “now”. Ask the same questions about your work environment, management, colleagues, training, etc. 

The goal with steps one and two is to outline a clear picture of what your most productive and least productive work environments look like. This will not be easy. And please note, I’m talking about productivity. There could be things we love about our jobs, but they don’t necessarily make us our most productive selves. 

Once you’ve outlined your most and least productive work environments. Benchmark where you are right now in relation to each. For example, maybe you said that your most productive self is working onsite, but you’re currently working a hybrid schedule. So, you’re close to your most productive but not exactly there. Another example might be you felt your most productive when you had regular one-on-one meetings with your manager but that’s not happening right now. 

STEP THREE. Do a gap analysis. There will be qualities that are aligned with your most productive self and that’s great. There will also be gaps – some small, others large – between where you are right now and your most productive self. 

STEP FOUR. Put a plan in place to address the gaps. In some cases, you might be able to chat about these gaps with your manager. For example, if you’d like more training, that could be addressed with a conversation. There could also be gaps that you have to address for yourself. For instance, maybe you’re currently working a hybrid work schedule and that’s fine but the days you’re not in the office are tough because you don’t have a dedicated workspace. You might need to spend some time thinking about how to make that happen. 

At the end of this activity, you should be able to share with others what you want and need to be your most productive self. It’s a great self-awareness activity focused on what it takes to perform. Your manager would love to know this information. And if you’re a consultant working from home, your family might like to know this as well so they can support your needs. 

The purpose of this exercise isn’t to buy things, although there could be things you need. The goal of this activity is to spend dedicated time thinking about your most productive work environment … and then trying to create it. Because when you’re doing your best work, everyone wins.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Fort Lauderdale, FL

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Organizations: Time to Reduce Friction In the Workplace

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

We’ve all heard the word “friction” before. It means the force that resists motion between two surfaces. I often think of friction when I’m wearing a new pair of shoes, and the friction produces a blister. 

Well, the other day, I was reading The New York Times Dealbook and they were talking about friction in organizations. The idea is similar. Organizations start adding “friction” to their processes and in the end, it produces poor outcomes. Examples of friction include:

Company websites that are slow or glitchy. Products that are always out of stock. Customers that have to wait a long time to speak with customer service. 

Friction can also exist inside organizations. Examples include:

Employees can’t get answers to their questions, whether that’s because HR isn’t available, or a self-service technology doesn’t work well.Regular paycheck errors and delays to correct the issue, whether that’s because the manager isn’t reviewing transactions, or the payroll team isn’t authorized to fix issues.Employees who have to wait exceptionally long periods of time for benefits like waiting a year to get an employee referral bonus. And just in case you’re wondering … yes, that does happen. 

Recently, we talked about making experiences “easy to buy, easy to use, and easy to share”. That’s a great example of reducing friction. Here are a few more things to consider: 

Make reducing friction a regular activity. Don’t wait until there’s a problem. Organizations should routinely examine their processes to make sure that friction isn’t hurting the operation. I could see how organizations don’t intend to create friction, but they add a little step here or make a small change and before you know it, the process lacks effectiveness and efficiency. 

Reducing friction is an organizational initiative. This can’t just be targeted in a single department. Every department should make process reviews a part of the way they function. I’ll use HR and accounting as an example. If HR does a process review and streamlines a few things … but accounting doesn’t … then it’s possible the results will be small or non-existent. 

Focus on more than cost-cutting. While reducing friction might have a direct impact on expenses, it’s possible that some friction reducing activities will result in more indirect outcomes like better customer service, improved productivity, etc. which does ultimately have a positive effect on finances.  

Communicate changes. Organizational departments work together and should consult each other when it comes to process reviews and changes. Everyone needs to buy-into the new process. The new process should be communicated to everyone, and a transition plan should be in place. 

The business world is constantly changing and that means the way we do things will change too. It only makes sense to review processes to make sure the organization isn’t being wasteful. That’s good for the company, employees, and customers.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of London, England

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Organizations: Start Thinking About the Connected Customer

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

One of the conversations that frustrates me is the one about generations. Mainly because a lot of people get the generation conversation wrong. They assume that because you were born in a certain year and fall into a generational date range like Boomer, Gen X, or Millennial that you’re a certain type of person. 

Granted, some of the conversations about generations are true. If you were born before the launch of the iPhone, then you might remember these things called pagers. Or you might remember when airlines printed paper tickets instead of using your watch to board a plane. That makes sense. New things are invented all the time. 

What frustrates me is the “if you’re a Millennial, you’re confident with technology”. Like Gen X and Boomers can’t be confident with technology. Or “if you’re Gen X, you’re pragmatic”. Like no one else can be pragmatic. 

All that being said, I do realize that the conversation about generations doesn’t seem to be going away, so I wanted to share with you a new generation: Gen C, also known as the connected customer. I read about this concept on Brian Solis’ blog. Brian is the head of global innovation at Service Now. 

What was interesting about Generation C, the connected customer, is that it wasn’t age related. Gen C is about technology and the role technology plays in our lives. According to Pew Research:

97% of Americans own a cellphone of some kind.85% of Americans own a smartphone.77% of U.S. homes have broadband subscriptions. 

From a business perspective, organizations need to think about their consumers (obviously). The question becomes are they thinking about them in terms of being “connected” and what that means for the customer experience. 

The same is true for the “unconnected customer”. Does the organization have unconnected customers? What does that mean to the organization and its future plans? Let’s say the organization is a small retail operation. Most of their customers come into a physical store. But the organization wants to expand and have a greater online presence and get into e-commerce. How can the organization do that and keep customer loyalty?

Now take this down to the employee level. As more people rely on technology in their personal lives, they will expect their work experience to be comparable. Human resources departments have to think about their candidate and employee experiences. What interactions make sense to take place online, and which ones should be done in person? Like the rest of the organization, HR has to think about the unconnected candidate and employee. What kind of experience will they get?

The concept of Generation Connected got me thinking about the role of technology. Are organizations (and individuals) still stuck on the “old people don’t know tech” thinking? And if they are, is that kind of generational thinking holding you and the organization back? Technology is a great thing and it’s evolving all the time. Which means that at some point in the near future, we will all have exposure to modern technologies…and we will expect organizations to realize that.

Image capture by Sharlyn Lauby while trying to connect with pie in Reykjavík, Iceland

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