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Getting to Know Generation Z: the Entrepreneurial Mindset [Series]

Posted on by Linda Surles

Getting to Know Generation Z [Series]

PART 2: The Entrepreneurial Mindset

An entrepreneurial mindset is not synonymous with becoming an entrepreneur.  Generation Z tends to gravitate toward an Entrepreneurial Mindset; a mindset that has been described by The Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship as the skills and behaviors that include initiative and self-direction, risk-taking, flexibility and adaptability, creativity and innovation, and critical thinking and problem-solving.  Others have described an Entrepreneurial Mindset as the ability to see opportunities, organize resources and create value.  Many of these attributes fall into the category of what many leaders feel are missing today in their workforce and would welcome experienced employees who display these skills and behaviors.  Therein lies the question around how to foster and encourage the use of these attributes in someone who is new to the industry.  What are the boundaries for creativity?  How much risk should someone new to the workforce take prior to consulting someone?  And how can we help the entering workforce gain visibly and opportunity in putting their critical thinking and problem-solving skills to work? 

Do you know someone who has an entrepreneurial mindset within your organization today?  How might you coach, teach and mentor them to ensure that these attributes are appreciated and not stifled? 

Click Here for Part 1

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Top 10 Employee Engagement Statistics of 2017

Posted on by Linda Surles

Employee Engagement Statistics

 

  1. Disengaged Employees Quit Their Jobs

    51% of workers are looking to leave their current jobs

    Can you imagine that more than half the people at work don’t actually want to be there? That’s very scary, and it indicates that something is wrong with the system.

    Not only is the cost of turnover extremely high (upwards of 20% of an employee’s salary), but having disengaged employees within the workplace is also quite costly, and not only on a financial level.

    Yes, there is the cost of lost productivity and absenteeism, but think of the moral as well.

    Disengaged employees lack enthusiasm, act as company detractors instead of ambassadors and can be a drain on other employee’s moods – a sort of domino effect of negativity.

  2. Employee Engagement Is A Global Issue

    Only 13% of employees are engaged worldwide

    This number is just too low, and a big part of the reason for it is that people are not always put first. There is a human element lacking in the workforce, this understanding that people are at the center. Employees are the pulse of every business and as a means in themselves, not as a means to an end.

    The best way for companies to improve this is by creating a culture of recognition. This does not mean “good work” at an annual review, it means weaving the notion of appreciation into the tapestry of the culture.

  3. Employee Experience Dictates Customer Experience

    Highly engaged businesses see a 10% increase in customer ratings

    We don’t think enough about the connection between employees and customers, but the correlation between one’s happiness and the other’s is so high. You know that expression “made with love”.

    It shows when jobs are done with passion, and it also shows when jobs are done with disdain.

    When you have happy employees serving customers (whether or not they actually interact) customers statistically have a better experience. Companies need to know that investing in their employees is an investment in their customer loyalty as well.

  4. Empathy Is At The Core Of Employee Engagement

    80% of employees would work more hours to work for a more empathetic employer

    There are all sorts of intelligent leaders out there, but those with emotional intelligence take the cake. There are 12 elements of emotional intelligence that all leaders need to focus on, divided into four categories. Empathy falls under the category of social awareness.

    This means having compassion for others and their stressors (in and out of work) and acting on it.

    This will help managers build relationships founded on trust and respect, which will inspire employees to work hard, innovate and be committed to your company, because they feel seen, heard and appreciated.

  5. Engaged Employees Help Drive Sales

    Highly engaged businesses see a 20% increase in sales

    When employees are engaged, they have more pride in their work and therefore put in a more valiant effort. Of course, higher efforts result in a greater quality output. This helps increase sales. It’s common sense, but many companies still don’t see the correlation between happy employees and happy customers.

    It’s a misconception that working more means working smarter. We think that working happy is the more important factor.

  6. There Is Not Enough Recognition

    60% of workers would like work praised more frequently

    Praise doesn’t need to be massive every time, it just needs to be frequent and genuine. A simple thank you can go a really long way when you take a minute out of your day to sincerely express gratitude.

    And just as the form of praise doesn’t need to be huge, nor does the reason for giving it. If you want to motivate your employees, recognize their feats – big, and small.

  7. Growth and Continuous Learning Are Essential

    59% of employees say they can “grow and develop” at their organization

    When we surveyed our app users to find out what was the most important to them, we found that 41% of employees care most about having the opportunity to learn and grow within their organization.

    Repeating the same task every day without the stimulation of new initiatives or the encouragement to be curious and take risks will serve to disengage your employees.

  8. Managers Must Remove Fear

    42% of employees feel that their leadership does not contribute to a positive company culture

    Having a positive company culture means one that is free from fear. However, managers are often the main contributors to this fear that exists within the organization.

    Whether or not it is intended, more often than not it is due to a lack of communication. Constant communication is key to developing a workplace founded on psychological safety, which contributes to an overall positive company culture.

  9. Employees Want To Get To Know Their Manager

    70% of employees would like to spend more time with their manager

    There shouldn’t be such a divide between employees and managers, especially considering both are working towards the same ultimate goal. In the spirit of teamwork and friendship, managers and employees need to connect often and more importantly, on a human level, not only business.

    Whether it be grabbing lunch as a team outside of the office or team building activities, employees want to spend time with their manager and get to know them as more than a “boss” but as a person. This helps remove fear, and also helps to cultivate a safe environment for employees to share ideas and feelings.

  10. Employees Need To Connect With Their Peers

    60% of employees eat alone at their desk, working
    This is a problem twofold. First, it means that your employees are overworked, and second, it means that your employees are not connecting.

    34% of employees don’t think they have enough interaction with their colleagues, despite the fact that having a friend at work is one of the most important elements in keeping employees satisfied and engaged.

    Managers should encourage employees to step away from their work and decompress. It’s entirely unproductive to overwork, and it will only make for unhappy, cranky team members

 For more content like this, keep up with us on LinkedIn!

Via OfficeVibe

Robins, Ali. “Top 10 Employee Engagement Statistics of 2017.” Web blog post. OfficeVibe. 25 Jul. 2017. Web. 14 Aug. 2017. 

8 Leadership Attributes of a Highly Engaged Workforce [Series]

Posted on by Linda Surles

Eight Foundational Leadership Attributes of Engagement 

PART 2

The Engagement Attributes of (3) Understanding and Utilization of Continuous Improvement (CI) and (4) Accountability through Action

With an enhanced sense of business acumen, it is only natural for individuals, teams, and organizations to begin to focus their energy and efforts around Continuous Improvement.  Waste elimination is all around us and it can show up in our processes, as well as how we manage our time.

While understanding how to utilize the right tool at the right time is an important component of engagement, our ability to follow-through upon improvement efforts by completing commitments, modeling and reinforcing new behaviors, and measuring impact is just as important for sustainable success.

Showing up and giving our best each and every day requires a level of energy, organization, and engagement that raises the bar for making and transitioning through change.  As a leader, how deliberate are you at driving collective accountability?  How would you rate your ability to follow-up on and owning your commitments?

Join us for our 4 part series as we unveil and unpack each of the 8 leadership attributes. 

Click Here for Part 1

For more content like this, keep up with us on LinkedIn!

Make your program succeed with proven strategies to generate momentum and sustain long term change.

If you want to tour a facility to see what the execution of these leadership strategies looks like, and visualize what you can achieve in less than a year:

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I just came back from Vacation and Missed the ENTIRETY of Scaramucci's Career

Posted on by Linda Surles

I just came back from Vacation and Missed the ENTIRETY of Scaramucci’s Career

Anthony Scaramucci is out as the White House Communications Director. Scaramucci held the position for a whole 10 days!! So I guess the “Mooch” did NOT see that coming. All this boils down to communication with members of your team, organization, or even friends. Excelling in communication is one of the top consistently rated traits of distinguished leaders. But communication skills are not intuitive or taught in business school. You need to understand the communication style of the different personalities in your teams. Bad communication has ended the career of many CEOs and other public figures….ummm Scaramucci.

Getting to Know Generation Z: the Intrapersonal and Independent Learners [Series]

Posted on by Linda Surles

Getting to Know Generation Z [Series]

PART 1: The Intrapersonal and Independent Learners

Research described in the book, Generation Z Goes to College by Corey Seemiller portrays Generation Z as having a preference for intrapersonal and independent learning over group work, yet they like to do their work alongside others in a social manner when studying.  Translate that from entering college to entering the workforce, and what does that mean for organizations in how they develop and deliver training, build and modify physical workspace, and collaborate across teams? 

  • Develop and Deliver Training:  Growing up in a time where computer technology has influenced individual on-line learning.  Generation Z is no stranger to independent learning platforms that foster intrapersonal learning; learning that is described as introspective and independent where learners are aware of their own thinking and have the ability to analyze the way in which they think and feel.  Translate this into the formal and informal training environment and organization’s will need to incorporate independent thinking activities and self-reflection activities into training curriculum while providing support and training for working and contributing in group settings. 
  • Build and Modify Physical Workspace:  In an effort to manage costs and increase collaboration, many organizations have already shifted to an open work space environment.  Changes in the physical workspace range from no doors and shorter walls to much larger changes such as assigned work areas where you pick your seat based on availability when you arrive at work.  While these changes are met with mixed feelings from the other 3 generations, to Generation Z, this type of office environment is a natural extension of the educational environment that they have been a part of all of their lives. 
  • Collaboration Across Teams:  Delivering timely and quality products and services to customers requires collaboration across teams.  As on a sports team, work environments require cooperation and a group effort to achieve goals.  Generation Z thrives in social settings that are ripe environments for spontaneous cross collaboration and creativity to generate ideas, while independently working on assigned actions.  Through boundary management and expectation setting, both collaboration and independence can both occur. 

We would love to hear from you.  In what ways does your organization already support these preferences of Generation Z?

Click Here for Part 2

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Five Steps to Minimizing Performance Barriers

Posted on by Linda Surles

Five Steps to Minimizing Performance Barriers

“There are no constraints on the human mind, no walls around the human spirit, no barriers to our progress except those we erect ourselves.”  Ronald Reagan

When developing and maintaining a Continuous Improvement culture in organizations today, it is critical that leaders provide employees with a process for overcoming obstacles.  Whether anticipated or unforeseen, barriers can easily derail employees’ efforts and cause a decline in performance outcomes.  To keep performance improvements on track, leaders can follow a practical, five-step process.

Five Steps to Minimizing Performance Barriers: 

  1. Agree that a barrier exists.
  2. Discuss alternatives to minimizing the barrier.
  3. Agree on actions to be taken to implement an alternative course of action.
  4. Follow up to confirm follow through on the actions taken.
  5. Adjust operational processes to ensure the barrier remains minimized moving forward.

By helping employees face barriers head on, a leader will build trust and reinforce a Continuous Improvement culture.  Over time, employees will become more adept at recognizing barriers, providing alternative opens and following through with corrective actions on their own.

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VIDEO: Business Bootcamp – Driving Greater Execution, Engagement, and Ultimately Earnings

Posted on by Linda Surles

 

“In 35 minutes, Shane Yount captured the essence of what we need to change at our company, which mirrored the recent interviews we had done with our team of change and improvement agents!”

– Program Manager, The Boeing Company 

Watch Shane speak on these Key Points:

  • Driving Business Acumen at a tactical level
  • Moving accountability from a concept to a practice and elevate engagement
  • Eliminating hours of meetings a week by re-calibrating intent
  • Moving from abstract OPEX tools to business critical necessities

    Keep Up With Us on LinkedIn

Leadership GPS – Are Your Leaders Lost?

Posted on by Linda Surles

“Invest in Your People”

Leadership Development

Are Your Leaders Lost without their GPS?

In today’s business environment, organizations need everyone, both leaders and team members to be actively engaged in driving the business.  However, if your leaders are like the leaders in many organizations, they are overwhelmed and unclear about their role, their organizational boundaries, and their authority.  This lack of clarity and feeling of being overwhelmed is often exacerbated as they navigate through complex and bureaucratic organizational systems that may leave them feeling exhausted, hopeless, and stuck.  Leaders spend the majority of their time just trying to keep up, putting out the next fire, and fighting roadblocks. 

It is time we acknowledge that our leaders are just getting by at best, being constantly stuck on “defense”, in reactionary mode.  Our leaders are not leading anything, as they are unable to be on “offense”, proactively ensuring the execution of organizational strategy by planning, developing, inspiring, and improving the business through the people that drive it forward.    

Leaders are searching for the mystical ingredients that will make things easier.  They are searching for simplicity, clarity, and an engaged workforce that supports one another and works toward a common goal.   Leaders want answers to questions such as:

  • “How am I supposed to devote time to developing others when I am so overwhelmed with my own responsibilities?”
  • “How do I get my employees to “Own It” and be more engaged in the business?”
  • “How do I change an environment that is content with being reactive?”
  • “How do I explain and communicate strategy to others when it is unclear to me?”
  • “How am I supposed to manage the competing and conflicting priorities that are part of my day to day work?”

If your leaders feel this way more days than not, they probably feel as if they have been abandoned by the organization, lost, and unable to acquire a signal on their “GPS” to get themselves back on track. They are unclear about where to go and how to get there.  They are lost without a clear leadership guidance tool and the proper behaviors necessary to navigate through the challenges and detours that are a natural part of achieving goals through engaged people.

So how can I help my leaders navigate this challenging environment and drive engagement and accountability?

DEVELOP VISIBLE LEADERSHIP SKILLS:  WE ARE ALL LEADERS!

Many organizations have invested a massive amount of time focusing on initiatives such as updating their facilities, implementing lean and six sigma tools that often become the flavor of the month, and other “point in time” diagnostic efforts that don’t seem to deliver much value.  Although these initiatives are important if done in the right context, often overlooked is the most critical investment – developing our people in a way that will engage them to the business and deliver sustainable results. The development of people that CSI is referring to encompasses the entire organization.

It has often been said that leadership is all about authority and the title that goes along with it.  At CSI, we believe that nothing can be further from the truth.  Leadership is not about job titles or authority, it is about action and behaviors.  It’s about the ability to influence outcomes and inspire others.  Leaders can and must be found at all levels across the organization.  There is a critical need to develop individuals to learn and apply key behaviors that inspire others, spark influence, and drive to sustainable results and outcomes.  High performance is achieved only when everyone on the team, not just a select few choose to lead.

Eight Foundational Attributes of Engagement

To place a framework around the key behaviors required to generate the output of increased engagement, CSI has identified the Eight Foundational Attributes of Engagement.  These attributes must be understood, practiced, and measured to elevate engagement within a team or organization.  These attributes support the foundation that is the overall Leadership GPS Model and move leaders to “transformational” thinking around the goals, people, and systems required to ensure long term success.  Highly engaged employees are described as having “it”; it is as if they have somehow found the secret magical recipe to inspire and influence others.  They are described as having presence in the way that they incorporate the behaviors defined under each attribute into the work environment in a natural, “the way we work around here way”.  The impact can become cultural when an organization works toward shifting the paradigm and provides the support, training, and coaching needed for this transformation. 

What are these Eight Leadership Attributes of a Highly Engaged Workforce?  Join us for our four part series as we unveil and unpack each of the 8 leadership attributes.

Click Here to View Part One

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Communication Secrets of the World's Most Influential Leaders

Posted on by Linda Surles

Communication Secrets of the World’s Most Influential Leaders

It is impossible to become a great leader without being a great communicator.  It is the ability to develop a keen external awareness that separates the truly great communicators from those who muddle through their interactions with others. If you examine the world’s greatest leaders, you’ll find them all to be exceptional communicators. They might talk about their ideas, but they do so in a way which also speaks to your emotions and your aspirations. They realize if their message doesn’t take deep root with the audience then it likely won’t be understood, much less championed.  The following are several communication secrets that all great leaders share:

  1. Get Personal – Stop issuing corporate communications and begin having organizational conversations – think dialog not monologue.
  2. Get Specific – Learn to communicate with clarity. Simple and concise is always better than complicated and confusing.
  3. Always Be the Last to Speak – Simply broadcasting your message will not have the same result as engaging in meaningful conversation.
  4. Read Between the Lines – Great leaders have the uncanny ability to understand what is not said, witnessed, or heard. If you keep your eyes & ears open and your mouth shut, you’ll be amazed at how your level or organizational awareness is raised.
  5. Speak to Groups as Individuals – Great communicators can tailor a message such that each and every person feels as if they were speaking directly to them. Knowing how to work a room and establish credibility, trust, and rapport are keys to successful interactions.

“Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers, who can cut through argument, debate and doubt, to offer a solution everybody can understand.” ― Colin Powell

Keep Up With Us on LinkedIn

8 Leadership Attributes of a Highly Engaged Workforce [Series]

Posted on by Linda Surles

Eight Foundational Leadership Attributes of Engagement 

PART 1

To place a framework around the key behaviors required to generate the output of increased engagement, CSI has identified the Eight Foundational Attributes of Engagement.  These attributes must be understood, practiced, and measured to elevate engagement within a team or organization.  These attributes support the foundation that is the overall Leadership GPS Model and move leaders to “transformational” thinking around the goals, people, and systems required to ensure long term success.  Highly engaged employees are described as having “it”; it is as if they have somehow found the secret magical recipe to inspire and influence others.  They are described as having presence in the way that they incorporate the behaviors defined under each attribute into the work environment in a natural, “the way we work around here way”.  The impact can become cultural when an organization works toward shifting the paradigm and provides the support, training, and coaching needed for this transformation. 

What are these Eight Leadership Attributes of a Highly Engaged Workforce? 

The Engagement Attributes of (1) Business Acumen and (2) Altruistic Decision Making

Think back to the first time you were empowered to make a business decision.  What was the situation?  Did you feel prepared?  Did you receive praise and reinforcement for your decision that inspired you to engage more, critical feedback on your decision that moved you to silence, or a thoughtful review of the positive and consequential impacts of your decision that educated you and encouraged you to think differently next time?  As leaders, one of our biggest responsibilities is developing our people and their knowledge of the business from both a micro and macro perspective so that they are able to evaluate risks and opportunities and make decisions quickly that are organizationally focused. Elevating Engagement goes hand in hand with being intentional about educating employees on the competition, the drivers of business success, and how the way.

Join us for our 4 part series as we unveil and unpack each of the 8 leadership attributes. 

Click Here for Part 2

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