Employee Engagement

Aristotle said

"Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work"

I love this quote as it sums up in 9 words why leaders should be concerned with the "happiness" of their employees at work. If people feel values, if they feel listened to, if they feel their work is meaningful...then this will be reflected in their work.

Don't ignore inexperience

One of the easiest things to do, is to dismiss new recruits or young people because they have not "been there and done it"

St Benedict once said "Always listen to the young monks: they know all the things that you have forgotten"

So true.....experience is fantastic but it can often blind you...have you ever said "Oh we have tried that, no that doesn't work...." both these sentences are dangerous - you are assuming that it won't work now, or that the idea is not good.....maybe this time it will work, maybe this time you have the right people to execute it well.....so remember teams are great when experience and lack of experience are both respected and both listen to each other.

Talent Chess

Sometimes I believe there is a misconception about the role of talent management. I believe that your role is not to create talent, but to match talent to the right role so that it can flourish. There is so much talent wasted because people don't get to know the person and develop them into roles that suit their skills, personality etc

So talent management is like chess - moving people around the corporate board, to find the position that they can win from!

Customers are Sacred

Customers are the most important part of any firm. Looking after the customer is a given - or at least should be! It is a relationship that needs work and attention. Remember that any asset - in this case the relationship - deteriorates if left neglected. Assets need attention and care.

So this makes complete sense for external customers but it just as true for internal customers. Customers to your work are just as sacred and should be dealt with, with the same care and attention. Ask them what they want, educate them about what you can do, deal with queries promptly, treat with respect....you wouldn't shout at an external customer so why an internal?

People who build strong internal networks will always be valuable. People who see the internal customer as sacred will be valued. People will want to nurture that relationship not look for other alternatives e.g. outsourcing. Remember the best way to protect your job is to do it brilliantly! If you do the job in isolation and not create added value then why would people not see this as a commodity that could be bought "cheaper". Add value...to add success...to add security.

Loyalty vs Contribution

When you are reviewing your team - remember one thing. Loyalty is fantastic and should be treasured but and it is a big but - contribution is key.
Don't let loyalty mask your view of the contribution that the person is making. Your role is to ensure that the loyalty is turned into performance - for me that is engagement.
Check out The Engaging Brand podcast and their blog for help if you feel you need ideas of how to achieve Engagement - well worth checking out.

A Question You Should Ask

Whether it be your partner, spouse, direct report, colleague...try asking this question.

"What is the best praise that you ever received and what made it so good?"

From that you can understand much more about the individual. You can then adapt to the style they link - informal vs formal, verbal vs written, public vs private etc. Every one of us is different, learn how to make each individual special. It is not how you like praise, it is how THEY want praise.