Cubicles And Collaboration

There has been quite a bit written lately about office space design.  Mostly, the points of view are about what encourages collaboration and “effective use of space”. However there seems to be little thought about the impact of it on current employees.  Collaboration is monumentally important.  There is almost nothing done in an organization today that isn’t done as a team.  But, collaboration can’t be forced or mandated.  Collaboration is a function of the people and dynamic on a team.  It has to be encouraged, fostered, etc.  
 
Effective use of office space really is about the type of work that your organization does and how changing it might impact your current employees.
 
THE DREADED CUBICLE

Cubicles are accepted practice.  It is really unclear why though.  For the most part, cubicles are associated with the worst part of work.  Based on a very unscientific study, the three biggest issues with cubicles:
 
1. THEY GIVE A FALSE SENSE OF PRIVACY –
For some reason employers give half walls between employees to allow for a sense of privacy.  But, they don’t really give privacy at all.  People can’t really have conversations or phone calls that aren’t heard by others.  Although there are “walls” there is no real privacy.
 
2. PROMOTE CLASSISM
Unless each and every person in the organization has a cubicle, they indicate the differences in hierarchy of an organization.  There are some organizations where employees and managers are in cubes, but the managers have BIGGER cubes.  It is a physical reminder that not everyone is equal in the organization.
 
3. DEMOTE INNOVATION
Cubicles not only don’t allow for much privacy, but they don’t allow for much innovation either.  The separation between employees is not enough to have private conversations and therefore lessens the opportunity for spontaneous collaboration.  Noise is frowned upon in many “cubicle farms”.  Trying to solve problems together is difficult when there is little room for collaboration.
 
HOW ABOUT “OPEN SPACE”
 
The newest trend in creating more “collaborative” offices is open space. Essentially, it removes all the barriers between employees  so they have to sit right next to each other, sometimes around a common table, to get work done.  The theory is that this will increase employee contact and enable great collaboration.  But there are some inherent problems with open space workplaces:

1. IT IS NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE FOR EMPLOYEES TO THINK THROUGH PROBLEMS AND CONTEMPLATE –

Cramming everyone into the same space actually decreases the ability to think.
 

 
When you’re in an open office, your brain becomes perceptually loaded,” said Steven Orfield, president of Orfield Laboratories, a Minneapolis-based architectural and product-research firm.
 
Increased stress levels decrease our abilities to think clearly.  Our ideas become muddled and we actually get less done.
 
2. THEY ARE A NOT CONDUCIVE TO “NON-EXTROVERTS”
 
This is all great if you’re an extrovert, as Gensler’s Erik Lucken wisely observes in his essay, “The Unsung Office Hero.” But, as he cautions, “For the estimated 25 percent of the population who are introverts, the future workplace as described above is a daunting prospect…. Putting an introvert in a dense, open-office plan is like forcing the proverbial square peg into the round hole.” – Allison Arieff
 
SO WHAT IS THE RIGHT ANSWER TO CREATE A GREAT WORKPLACE THAT ENGENDERS COLLABORATION?

 1.     DON’T RELY ON THE MAGIC OF SPACE TO DRIVE, ENCOURAGE OR ENFORCE COLLABORATION.
Although this seems like a no-brainer, the fact that so many organizations seem to jump on any bandwagon to encourage collaboration makes it necessary to say.  It is similar to believing that buying a treadmill or stair master will make you lose weight.  Just like buying a piece of equipment can’t magically make the pounds drop off, altering space alone will do little to encourage people to work together more effectively.
 
2.     IF OFFICE SPACE IS GOING TO BE REDESIGNED TO ENCOURAGE COLLABORATION GET EVERYONE INVOLVED IN DESIGNING IT AND MAKE SURE EVERYONE PARTAKES IN THE CHANGES
Yes, that’s right. Get everyone to provide input on how to make the office more collaborative.  It’s not about implementing every idea, but people want to have a say in where they spend the majority of their day.  Just like any change, if the people impacted are  involved, they are more likely to be on board.  And, make sure that every single person, from CEO to new hire, participate in the new office layout.  If employees are going to be working in an “open space” then the executives should too.
 
3.     BE MORE COLLABORATIVE.
Duh! If collaboration is important show it.  Don’t just change office layout and say “now be collaborative”.  Remember that treadmill? That’s similar to saying, see that treadmill?  Now get in shape!  Pretty stupid right?  If collaboration is important:

• Train managers to promote and encourage collaboration
• Develop collaboration as a skill
• Reward collaboration
• Knock down silos
 
Office space is important.  It can encourage collaboration and camaraderie.  But, not every company is Google or Facebook.  

Their cultures are designed around a specific style of work.  That is why the “open space” works for them.  Think about what is best for your organization and do that.  Don’t just copy the latest trend. That won’t make more collaboration it will just create more disengagement.
 
What do you think?

Anil Saxena is the President of Cube 2.14, an organizational development consulting firm that works with clients to increase both customer and employee engagement while decreasing turnover, improving customer retention, and increasing profitability within organizations.

Saxena is a certified High Impact coach and trainer and a Joint Application Design facilitator. He is also certified by both Rush Systems and IBM as a focus group facilitator. He is an inaugural member of Northwestern University’s Learning and Organizational Change program, and he earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Waiting Is The Hardest Part

As a consultant I do a lot of pitches and client presentations. The most gut wrenching time is not during the presentation but the few minutes before it starts.

What can you do to make sure that those last few minutes are not spent in a panic?  Here are three tips I learned hat have helped tremendously.
 
BE REALLY PREPARED.
 
Yes, it’s true. There is nothing better to get past the jitters than knowing

• What you are going to say,
• Potential questions,
• What your competitors might say
• A LOT about the company you are presenting to.
 
Sounds like a no brainier, but somehow I still see people fumbling around as if the first time they’ve seen the presentation is right before presentation time.
 
That means you have to be done with your presentation way ahead of time. Get it done at least a day early so you can print and relax
 
AMP UP
 
This one sounded silly to me when I first heard it but it worlds. Practice power poses before you present. There is a killer TED talk that gives the science behind it. Trust me, if you feel powerful you will be!
 

“Don’t fake it until you make it, fake it until you become it”  – Amy Cuddy
 
START THE PRESENTATION WITH QUESTIONS.
 
Yes, it’s another oldie but goodie. But it works. Nothing gets your mind at ease more than someone else talking.  It also helps you alter the presentation based on the answers. Sometimes, like in a presentation I did today, you might need to abandon your prepared remarks entirely!  Hence the reason to be prepared!!!!!!
 
Have a handful of questions to get the dialogue started. And don’t you dare start with “how’s the weather” or “how about those Cubs” type of nonsense.
 
Two things.
 
1. If you are a Cubs fan, admitting it is not smart (sorry I’m a White Sox fan).
2. Your questions should open up conversation, give you insight and show you are prepared. Asking questions gets you information but also tells a lot about you. There are no dumb questions but there are dumb times to ask them.
 
What do you do to be calm and ready to deliver presentations?

Anil Saxena is the President of Cube 2.14, an organizational development consulting firm that works with clients to increase both customer and employee engagement while decreasing turnover, improving customer retention, and increasing profitability within organizations.

Saxena is a certified High Impact coach and trainer and a Joint Application Design facilitator. He is also certified by both Rush Systems and IBM as a focus group facilitator. He is an inaugural member of Northwestern University’s Learning and Organizational Change program, and he earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Not All Of Us Can Be Presentation Picassos

Many of us know someone that can put together outstanding presentations in almost no time.  They whip them together like Gordon Ramsey making a delicious meal or Picasso painting a masterpiece. For most of us (at least for me), creating compelling presentations takes some serious thought and lots of preparation.  One of the best tools I’ve found to jumpstart the process and develop convincing content is an app called Haiku Deck.
 
HA-WHO?
 
Haiku Deck can be on the Apple Apps store (sorry Android users, I’m sure they are working on one).  It is an awesome tool that builds presentations though pictures.  The concept is really simple.  Once a theme is picked, simply type in a word or phrase and Haiku Deck will provide a series of pictures that represent it.
 
• Want to show change – show the metamorphosis of a caterpillar into butterfly
• Want to show adaptability – show a chameleon changing colors
 
There a many pictures available in the free version and even more in the inexpensive paid version.  It is a powerful tool to develop storyboard for a presentation that filled in with charts or other details as needed.
 
WHY PICTURES?
 
According to John Medina’s best selling (and overall awesome book) Brain Rules, building a presentation using pictures follows two key rules of the brain:
 
• People don’t remember boring things
• Vision trumps all other senses

Pictures are quickly “lodged” (not a scientific term) into memory and easily recalled.  Pictures help to link your ideas in the presentation to solutions or concepts that the potential client will remember as yours.  Telling a story with pictures is what the brain wants! Your audience is doing while you are talking anyway. Presenting like this just helps things along.
 
WHAT ABOUT ALL MY DATA, FACTS, FIGURES AND BULLET POINTS?!!??!??!?
 
The quick answer is, don’t worry about them.  More often than not, the potential client isn’t really going to read what you have on the slide.  They are looking to see
 
• Do you know what you are talking about?
• Are you a good fit culturally?
• Will you make them look good?

If you have to deliver data and figures, make sure you have them.  But in most cases, all those extraneous words on the page will distract from YOU.  That is  the magic and genius of Haiku Deck.  The app doesn’t allow for a lot of text, so you HAVE to know your stuff.  You want the audience to listen to you and not read ahead anyway, right?
 
Therefore, you will need to voice over details and create a leave behind rich with data.  Make sure that the leave behind has the some of the picture used in the presentation to cement the link.
 
If you are like me and aren’t a virtuoso of presentations, leverage Haiku Deck to build a compelling story that uses the most powerful sense to lock your ideas into the audience’s memory!
 
What programs do you use to improve your presentations?  Please let me know!!!

Anil Saxena is the President of Cube 2.14, an organizational development consulting firm that works with clients to increase both customer and employee engagement while decreasing turnover, improving customer retention, and increasing profitability within organizations.

Saxena is a certified High Impact coach and trainer and a Joint Application Design facilitator. He is also certified by both Rush Systems and IBM as a focus group facilitator. He is an inaugural member of Northwestern University’s Learning and Organizational Change program, and he earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Keep Training Short!

The attention span of modern adults is anywhere between five and seven minutes. What sense does it make to create multi-day training if within the first 90 to 120 minutes, you’ve lost your audience?

LIFELONG LEARNING HAPPENS IN AN INSTANT. 

Generally, lifelong learning does not happen inside the classroom or by watching a computer-based training course. Recent research tells us that the attention span of adults, and people in general, is dramatically reducing. A 2008 study commissioned by Lloyds TSB Insurance found that the average adult attention span is now just five minutes seven seconds – down from twelve minutes a decade ago. Training or discussing something for too long actually lowers the amount of recall
 
“The human brain can only hold 7 pieces of information for less than 30 seconds” John Medina, author of Brain Rules.
And yet, training course after training course targeting adults spans days and sometimes even multiple weeks. What is the true benefit of all of this training?

Regardless of the type of training or the topic that is being discussed, the human brain works much more effectively when it is given the opportunity to learn small bites of information and then go away to synthesize it, reflect on it, potentially practice using it, and then go back and learn the next piece of information. The adult brain searches for the relevance and practicality of information that is delivered (a topic to be discussed at a later date). Once a piece of information is delivered, the immediate reaction is to try and place that piece of information into context; that context is different for each individual. Keeping it short enables adults to put the information in context, think on it, and be prepared to learn more at the next opportunity.

SO WHAT DOES THIS ALL MEAN?

Training in the web era must be sustained, brief, and very pointed. Based on research on the attention span of adults currently, it is vital that training be redesigned and repurposed to be extremely focused. It is no longer appropriate to have training that extends over multiple days or multiple weeks, unless there are frequent breaks and opportunities to step away from the training. Organizations are no longer capable of allowing employees to be away from their workspace or their duties for long stretches of time. Research will show that it is also not necessary to be away for long periods of time. For the most part, employees are not natural learners, therefore training must be high-impact but very brief, to allow them to go back and utilize what they have learned.

WHAT NOW?

This is actually great news. What it means is that training that has been previously developed only needs to be modified. New training can now be developed with the idea of “keep it short” as one of the development frames. There are some key concepts to remember when altering current or developing new training that will leverage the power of keeping it short on the learner’s ability to recall and utilize the information delivered:

◦     Bursts of knowledge
◦     Broken up into 7 – 10 minute increments
◦     Limit topics to 50 minutes
◦     DO NOT have lengthy training
◦     Keep things fresh
◦     Limits the need for multitasking

This is by no means an indictment or call to throw out all of the training that’s ever been developed that is longer than five to seven minutes. That is similar to saying that all buildings that don’t have elevators should be destroyed. For the most part, people who develop training are not neurobiologists or experts on the brain, so it wouldn’t be logical for them to have this information.  It does mean that training should be modified to leverage this new knowledge. It is similar thinking to why the blog has become so popular. Our attention spans and ability to take in large amounts of information about single topics have been reduced, both because we are busier and because there’s just so much more out there. Blogs allow us to learn new information in a very short amount of time, and utilize or share it to increase our ability to recall it when it’s necessary. Training is the same way.  Keeping it short makes it more effective, keeps it more accessible over the long haul, and increases the likelihood that training will have a positive impact on the performance of the individual and organization over time.
 
How long should training be?  Can we afford multi-day training anymore?  Let us know what you think!

Anil Saxena is the President of Cube 2.14, an organizational development consulting firm that works with clients to increase both customer and employee engagement while decreasing turnover, improving customer retention, and increasing profitability within organizations.

Saxena is a certified High Impact coach and trainer and a Joint Application Design facilitator. He is also certified by both Rush Systems and IBM as a focus group facilitator. He is an inaugural member of Northwestern University’s Learning and Organizational Change program, and he earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Successful Change – Help The One To Help The Many

Want to increase the likelihood that your big change initiative is successful? Talk about its impact on one individual, NOT how it will make the organization/team/department better.

In his recent book, The Upside of Irrationality, Dan Airely discusses that people relate or accept change more effectively when it’s related to the impact on one person.  Wonder if that is true?  During the 2008 US Presidential campaign, John McCain brought up how his policies would impact “Joe the Plumber.”  The mention did not help Senator McCain (obviously), but it did provide a platform for each candidate to relate their policies in a way that everyone could understand the impact to

THEM.

This phenomenon holds true for so many things that impact large groups directly:

• Selling pharmaceuticals
• Marketing legal services
• Encouraging people to donate money to the “needy”

…and so many more.
 
WHAT TO DO WITH THIS INFORMATION?

STOP trying to tell people what a big difference the “big change” will have on the organization or the team.

START sharing how changing (or not changing) will impact “a person.” Relate it to someone like the employee; this makes the change and its impact real.  It will also improve the quality of the communication and cut out a lot of the buzzwords and jargon.
 
The Small Business Chronicle suggests mapping out the changes as well. Tell employees exactly what is going on and create understanding from the beginning. Once employees are on board with the change, they can make the internal transition smoother and help clients and vendors adjust as well.
 
How do you relate the change to the individual?  What has worked in your experience?

Anil Saxena is the President of Cube 2.14, an organizational development consulting firm that works with clients to increase both customer and employee engagement while decreasing turnover, improving customer retention, and increasing profitability within organizations.

Saxena is a certified High Impact coach and trainer and a Joint Application Design facilitator. He is also certified by both Rush Systems and IBM as a focus group facilitator. He is an inaugural member of Northwestern University’s Learning and Organizational Change program, and he earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Learned Helplessness: Let’s Have A Conversation – Me Talk You Listen

Do you know the serial interrupter? That person who uses the 80-20 rule of conversation. They speak 80% and you speak 20% of the time (if that).

What happened to the art of communication?

Used to be a conversation looked like this:

• You talk, I listen
• I talk, you listen

But it seems like now conversation looks like this:

• You talk, I listen
• I talk, you interrupt
• You talk some more
• End conversation

My wife and I have noticed that regardless of the setting, people are getting worse and worse at having good two-way discussions. Not only is it frustrating, but it undermines the success of teams and organizations.

There are many new theories that say conversation is one of the most critical parts of leadership, teamwork, and collaboration.

Leadership is a conversation – June Harvard Business Review
Conversation is the path to a high performing team – Wharton School of Business e-newsletter
Conversation is critical to high powered organizations and groups– 
 
So how did conversation go from dialogue but monologue?

• People forgot how to talk to each other:
The usage of Twitter, Facebook, e-mail and texting require less and less actual conversation with other people.

• People are so busy they forget that conversation is two way between you AND the person your are speaking with:

We are working more hours, over the weekend, and even through vacations. There is so much work to do that people don’t feel like they have the time for dialogue. They just need to get things done.

• There is much less room for alternative opinions or even dissent:

With the onslaught of 24 hour news channels, blogs dedicated to a particular point of view and all of the other segregation of ideas there is very limited interest in hearing views that are not our own. We have lost the ability to listen to someone who has a different opinion and actually hear what they are saying.

How do you ensure that this very important part of ensuring organizations work and making relationships in life viable does not turn into a bother or a bore?

• We need to talk to each other:

This may sound counterintuitive with the previous statement that we have so much to do. But, we need to spend more time actually talking to each other sharing ideas and even disagree.

• We (this includes me especially) need to stop and listen much much more:

It is imperative that when we have the opportunity to speak with someone else that we spend 80% of the time listening to what they have to say. Allowing them to have full complete thoughts. Concentrating on one that person has to say. This way you can learn about them, learn about their point of view, and most importantly learn something new about yourself.

• Actively look for people that don’t agree with you to speak with:

In order to get better at the give-and-take of conversation, one of the best things that someone can do is to seek out conversations with people that have a polar opposite point of view. It could be something that is a controversial subject like politics or it could be something that is less confrontational such as differing musical preferences. The objective, is that no matter how upset you get at that person’s opinion, you must listen to them while they are speaking and not interrupt or think of your comeback to what they are saying. You must listen all the way through and only when they are finished can you respond. At the end of the conversation you let them know  one thing that you’ve learned from that persons point of view or perspective. You’ll be surprised at what you learn!

Conversation drives innovation and increases the likelihood of a successful project, team or organization.  It is vital that this does not become a lost art.  If nothing else, that would make talking very boring.

Do you think that people have gotten worse at having conversations? What are some things that you do to encourage conversation? Please let me know!

Anil Saxena is the President of Cube 2.14, an organizational development consulting firm that works with clients to increase both customer and employee engagement while decreasing turnover, improving customer retention, and increasing profitability within organizations.

Saxena is a certified High Impact coach and trainer and a Joint Application Design facilitator. He is also certified by both Rush Systems and IBM as a focus group facilitator. He is an inaugural member of Northwestern University’s Learning and Organizational Change program, and he earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Leadership Follies – Training Is Not A Cure All

FOR MANY YEARS CONSULTANTS AND EXPERTS HAVE TRIED TO CONVINCE LEADERS THAT TRAINING CAN IMPACT PERFORMANCE. IT SEEMS LIKE THE PROBLEM IS NO LONGER THAT THEY DON’T BELIEVE THAT TRAINING IS IMPORTANT, BUT THAT NOW THOSE SAME LEADERS THING THAT TRAINING IS THE “CURE-ALL” OR “SILVER-BULLET.”

“What has made people think that training people will magically make them more effective, efficient and overall higher performing?”  

Well, we told them it would.  But, we did too good of a job. We have too many people thinking that “training is a cure-all” for all leadership sins.

TRAINING FEELS LIKE THE RIGHT THING

Problem:
My team is not performing up to expectations…

Solution:
Well, train them to perform better!

Problem:
My team is suffering from low morale…

Solution:

Well, train them… Of course!

Uhm… Really??? Do you actually think that ‘training is the cure-all?

Leaders and organizations are so concerned about making quick changes and hitting quarterly numbers that they are always looking for the fastest way to make employees “better.”

Training feels like the right thing. And in some cases it can be, But this is the case only if it used properly. Remember that it is an arrow in the quiver that is needed to solve organizational issues and not just the the bow and arrow.

About $5.6 billion to $16.8 billion is wasted annually on ineffective training programs. ~Cary Cherniss, Rutgers University

According to improvement consultant Jim Clemmer, most organizations use their training investments about as strategically as they deploy their office supplies spending.

In the end, the impact on customer satisfaction, cost containment, or quality improvement is just as useless.

USING TRAINING WISELY

Training is an excellent way to help people increase their skill or learn about a big change. It is not a method to change behavior, And it is certainly not effective without set up and follow up.

A great way to think about using training is this:
• Develop an overall plan to alter organizational performance, introduce effective processes, and show how training will fit in.
• Make sure that people understand why they are being trained.
• Create the training course so that they have a tangible outcome or things they can use right away.
• Discuss the training with the group or individual very soon after the training.
• Set new expectations for performance once the training is completed.
• Allow time for the training to take.
• Communicate with people as if the training has worked.

“Training as a stand alone tool is like trying lose weight with exercise alone.”

It’s a lot of work and only gets you 20 to 30 percent of the solution desired. In order train in the most effective way, your training needs to be part of a larger plan designed for a particular outcome. It is a great tool to support change or introduce new concepts.

The key is that training needs to be put into context of the larger effort.

SIMPLE RULES

Just remember these three simple rules if you want to succeed:
1. You can train skill; You cannot train will.
2. Training is a great tool, but not the only tool for change
3. Training is not magic and will NOT solve every problem. You can’t train away the blues.

Organizations that use training as the panacea will quickly see that people will not take to the training and in turn, resent it.

So, do you have a strategy for the training systems that you use? Does your training plan fit into a larger organizational strategy? Are you making sure that the training that you pay for is being used effectively? Are you paying enough attention to the ROI of your training budget? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

**********
This blog also appears on the Linked2Leadership Blog.  Please visit them!

Anil Saxena is the President of Cube 2.14, an organizational development consulting firm that works with clients to increase both customer and employee engagement while decreasing turnover, improving customer retention, and increasing profitability within organizations.

Saxena is a certified High Impact coach and trainer and a Joint Application Design facilitator. He is also certified by both Rush Systems and IBM as a focus group facilitator. He is an inaugural member of Northwestern University’s Learning and Organizational Change program, and he earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Leadership Follies – Moving Furniture In A Burning House

Do you ever wonder if people running out of a burning house are thinking about rearranging the furniture? Would you think them crazy if they did?

And yet this is what we do so often in business. We run around doing things that don’t matter and really don’t make much sense…

We are often ignoring the real issues of leadership and process, and spend our precious time just looking at rearranging boxes on an organization chart.Reorganizing the staff can sometimes be just a blind stalling tactic that let’s us feel like we are doing something important. 

FIRE?  WHAT FIRE

Organizations have historically used reorganizations to solve real performance problems that really don’t have anything to do with structure.

For example, here are some real problems that a reorganization can help fix:

  • Ineffective leadership
  • Lack of accountability
  • Lack of, or poor, project/program prioritization
  • Poor internal or external communication
  • Few real measures to understand effectiveness of service (internal and external)
  • No cohesive/holistic approach to outsourcing or using vendors

As a by-product of many mergers and rapid growth, many organizational structures are unruly, but not untenable.
With competition nipping or gnawing at their heels, fundamental changes are usually in order and not just moving people from one side of the organizational chart to the other.
 
WHAT IS REARRANGING?
Reorganization is defined as:

re·or·gan·i·za·tion  (r-ôrg-n-zshn)n.
1. The act or process of organizing again or differently.
2. A thorough alteration of the structure of a business corporation.

Or quotes found from folks I know:

  • “Or perhaps you mean the kind of corporate lunacy that induces people who are far removed from operational reality to decide that they need to ‘shake things up‘ in the organization to ‘spur productivity‘ and ‘improve bottom-line results‘, without having a clue as to the true cost of their decision.”
  • “Layoffs“
  • “Reorganization is a ‘friendly term’ management uses to make significant structural/organizational/position changes more palatable when people are about to get ‘moved around.’”

Suffice it to say, most people do not think random reorganizations work well or at all.
 
PUTTING THE FIRE OUT FIRST 
The most important thing is to deal with what is really broken.

  • If leadership is not effective, help the leaders gain skills to become better leaders or find new ones.
  • If people aren’t being held accountable, set up processes to do so.
  • If project prioritization is an issue, make sure to create a forum to have all the key stakeholders discuss and agree upon project priorities and resources.

Essentially, deal with the real problem head on.

Don’t be naive; reorganizations are necessary, but are not the answer to all organizational issues.
 
REARRANGING THE FURNITURE WILL NOTPUT OUT THE FIRE
There are times that restructuring does cause increases in positive outcomes. However, more often than not they fail.

Although there are thousands of reasons why, they mostly boil down to three themes:

1. Employee and Leader Resistance
Employees and affected leaders often believe the reorganization is a result ofinability to make tough decisions or other non-business related rationale.

People hate change.

Change actually causes a reaction in the prefrontal cortex that has people resist change initially.  Outside of a very few occasions, everyone resists change regardless if it is good or bad.

If it’s determined to be necessary, make sure that the rationale for the reorganization is steeped in facts that point to improved performance.  Although people may still grumble, it is hard to argue with facts.

2. Timing is Horrible

Lenny Bruce said:
“Timing is everything.”  

Nothing could be more true when it comes to reorganizations. It is important to undertake a reorganization only during a slower time in the business cycle.

If that is not possible, it should not be in the midst of other big changes or at peak times.

If FedEx were to restructure, doing it between Thanksgiving and Christmas in America would not be a good time.

3. The Scope and Impact of the reorganization is not realistic or fully thought through

Doing these two things will set you up for failure:
1. Trying to turn a team around in very short time frame.
2. Adding a large amount of responsibility to a team that does not have the capacity.

Change does not have to happen all at once. It should not be thought of as a “once in a lifetime” opportunity.

Trying to get everything into one reorganization too quickly is like trying to jam 40 kilos of potatoes into a 10 kilo sack: something will break.
 
If the furniture really does need to be moved, then Move It.

Be clear about the issues that cause the lower productivity, efficiency, etc.   It is imperative that the real issues causing reduced productivity, profit, etc. are being addressed.

As a result of taking some actions to “put out the fire” a reorganization can be a natural outcome.  Make sure that the new structure works to address these issues.

Moving boxes on an organization chart will not solve deep-seated issues of performance and productivity.  It is vital to take time in determining what the true issues are.

MAKING THE REORGANIZATION SUCCESSFUL

1. Plan or the “Dip In the Delta”
Change will impact performance, but you can make that a positive.  That is why it is undertaken in the first place. The magic is knowing how to mitigate the dip in productivity and turn that quickly into a positive.  This takes planning and thought.

Make sure you are actively working on how to utilize the change to solve organizational and productivity problems 

2. Get Buy-In from Leaders, Employees, and Other Key Stakeholders
Make sure that the people impacted by the change not only buy in, but are “pulling for it” before it happens.

3. Make Sure the Process and Metrics Are In Place
There is nothing worse than not being able to accurately tell if the reorganization is really making a difference. Make sure there are agreed upon metrics to measure organizational performance to showcase wins and point out where more needs to be done.

Hone internal processes to ensure that performance gains can be realized.

Make sure that internal communication, project prioritization, and other key processes are known, used, and enforced to maximize the impact of the reorganization.

4. Take Care of Employees and Leaders After the Reorganization.

Reorganizations and change initiatives in general fail if focus is taken off the change once it’s implemented or goes live.

This is a huge mistake.

The most important work and most critical time to focus is right after the reorganization takes place.

Leaders need training and support, employees need to know where to find answers and express concerns, and customers need to continue to be served and find resolution to problems when they arise

5. There Must Be a Willingness to Take On More Change, Just Not too Quickly

Nothing is ever perfect the first time.

It’s okay to tweak structure and process once it’s been in place for a little while if its not working. In fact, if you don’t people will learn to get around things to get what they need.

If a change is not working, admit it, but only if there is proof that it’s not working. Once time has been given to make the change work and it is proven to be unsuccessful, change it again.
 
REMEMBER: PUT OUT THE FIRE FIRST, AND THEN REDECORATE
Reorganizations can be a powerful tool to support organizational change.  They can be a tool in increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of an organization.  But it is imperative that the real underlying issues of low performance are taken care of first.

Without that, no matter how well the sofa looks against the wall, the house will still burn down.

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This blog also appears on the Linked2Leadership Blog.  Please visit them!

Anil Saxena is the President of Cube 2.14, an organizational development consulting firm that works with clients to increase both customer and employee engagement while decreasing turnover, improving customer retention, and increasing profitability within organizations.

Saxena is a certified High Impact coach and trainer and a Joint Application Design facilitator. He is also certified by both Rush Systems and IBM as a focus group facilitator. He is an inaugural member of Northwestern University’s Learning and Organizational Change program, and he earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Preparing For Meetings, Going To Meetings, And Getting Coffee

“Being a high-performance organization!”

“Doing more with less.”

In the hallways and meeting rooms in organizations around the globe, people use phrases like these to imply that they are working toward hyper-performance.  Sure, there is a lot of hyperbole, but what really happens at work?  Is an increase in productivity really occurring?

The short answer is no.  Companies seem like they are getting more out of their current workforce.  But, if customers are buying less, fewer employees can do more of the work.  The recent rise in productivity is masking this dirty little secret.

A great deal of employee’s time is spent doing one of three tasks:

1. Preparing for meetings
2. Going to meetings
3. Getting coffee/snacks/etc.

Working for a Living?

Research says that many employees manufacture work to make themselves look better, look busy and look important. But what does this type of behavior do for the bottom line? How can that energy be turned toward something good?

The problem is a result of two issues:
1. Companies knock the creativity out of employees
2. Employees don’t act like owners

Kicking the creative habit

After consulting with a number of great organizations over the last many years, one constant has become clear to me:

The culture of organizations both drives success and drives people crazy.

New employees are generally hired because of their experience, enthusiasm, drive, and new ideas.  There is a great deal of fanfare when the new employees arrive until they start sharing ways to make the organization more effective. However, something different actually happens when most new employees arrive in their new spot. Each time they bring a new idea, they are essentially told to “sit down and shut up.” After too much of this type of treatment, they reach the point of frustration and “go native.”

Going native is:

To act and do as the members of the tribe, town, environment an individual finds themselves in as to blend in and be accepted.

Then, lo and behold, the very creativity and spark that was the reason that the employees were hired is snuffed out like the torch at tribal council on “Survivor.”

I just work here…

But, employees are not blameless.  As Sisyphus can attest, pushing a rock up a hill can be very difficult.  However, successful employees (and people) are folks that take responsibility and pride in their roles.  As a wise mentor once told me,

“I act like this little part of the company is mine.  I run it as if it were my own, making sure to be careful with money, look for opportunities to improve and fight the status quo.”

Too often, employees work hard to distance themselves from an organization. Many people feel like they are not going to be at a company long-term so why should they invest themselves.  It leads to a very “quick-fix” mentality.  Companies certainly don’t help themselves by using layoffs as a method to meet quarterly profit goals.  As the old saying goes, you can’t go into a marriage expecting divorce.  That is a recipe for disaster.

Employees must step up and take ownership of their role and tasks.

Solution Center

So now what do we do about it?

Care for creativity.

It almost goes without saying that creativity and enthusiasm are the lifeblood of any organization/team.  These are characteristics that should be nurtured.  Creativity comes in all disciplines.  It has been shown that innovation comes from an engaged and motivated workforce. Determine how engaged folks are now and give your managers the tools they need to increase it, all the time.

Figure out what you want to be.

Teams/organizations need a purpose that drives them to act.  Innovation comes from the need to fulfill that purpose. Make sure that the purpose is well-known and that actions are aligned to meeting it.  Focused effort naturally eliminates waste, increases clarity, and actually makes work more fun.  It is a powerful incentive to know where you are going, why you need to get there and what happens if you don’t.

Reward ownership.

Do whatever you can to notice, recognize and reward employees when they act like owners.  Owners don’t waste; they go the extra mile, take risks and are unwilling to smooth things over.  As a business owner, the drive is to be successful now and even more successful in the future.  Relationships are nurtured because they are important over the long haul.

Be an owner.

As an employee at any level, treat the organization you are in as if you are an owner.  It makes work much more satisfying if you are doing the extra work to benefit you.  It seems like semantics, but ownership allows for responsibility and gives latitude to be bold both in action and in protection of the organization.  Even if you think that the job is temporary, an ownership mentality will provide some clarity of decision and perspective.

But what about meetings?

Meetings are actually a powerful method to communicate and get work done.  However, they have been used and abused making them seem ridiculous.  If organizations actively protect creativity and encourage an ownership mentalitythey will naturally be more effective.  Time won’t be wasted on preparing for or attending meaningless meeting.  However, they will need a good cup of “joe”.

What are your experiences of acting like an owner?  Have you seen what happens when an organization promotes an ownership mentality?  Where might this be effective?

Anil Saxena is the President of Cube 2.14, an organizational development consulting firm that works with clients to increase both customer and employee engagement while decreasing turnover, improving customer retention, and increasing profitability within organizations.

Saxena is a certified High Impact coach and trainer and a Joint Application Design facilitator. He is also certified by both Rush Systems and IBM as a focus group facilitator. He is an inaugural member of Northwestern University’s Learning and Organizational Change program, and he earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Follow The Yellow Brick U-Turn

SOMETIMES, REALITY BITES.

Sometimes it’s just a nip at the ankle.

Other times, reality bites your hand.

And other times it jumps up and bites us in the back side.

One way that reality bites is when plans should go one way, but somehow take a detour and go another way in a totally wrong direction that leads to a dead-end. When this happens, we scratch our heads and wonder if somehow we woke up in the middle of “Opposite Day.”

BUSINESS CASE

When organizations get into trouble with their businesses, the job of the leaders is to recognize what is happening and make the necessary changes to get things back on course. They need to be able to understand their current conditions and seewhat steps need to be taken by creating effective plans and strategies. Leaders should use all the resources at their disposal to execute their planning so that they have the best shot at correcting their course.

Using both internal talents and outside consultants, the leaders responsibility is to get the best plan at the most reasonable cost.

As a business consultant who works with organizations on developing plans for them, I am called upon to help create effective plans that implement positive changes. After working hard to develop a plan for a client, I recently “got bitten by reality.” The reality was that a client who clearly needed to change course “decided not to decide” on my new plan.

They loved the plan that I created and agreed that it would work, but they took a detour into no-man’s land. Even after an exhaustive search for potential vendors to create a plan to help them change course, the decision was made to…make no decision.

They were headed down the yellow brick road to a better place, but somehow got off track and took a detour.

DECISION MAKING

The client loved the plan, but didn’t want to use it. What is that all about, I wondered?

To get my answers as to why the client “decided not to decide” to change, I did what all good consultants do; I did a Google search and asked my peers for the answer.  Here is what I found:

  • Companies take, on average 15% longer to come to decisions about vendors, strategy and organizational changes (2009 Right Management Survey)
  • 20% of companies, on average, decide that the best course of action is no action when deciding on strategy, vendors and organizational changes
  • Internal decision-making processes add, on average, 10 to 20% more time tocomplete contracts, negotiations, etc.

Discovering this information made me even more curious.  Why would that be?  What could be the cause of this institutional analysis paralysis?  After some more conversation, research, and interviews I found some more fascinating facts:

Fear Factor

It seems natural that companies are hesitant to make decisions because there is a lack of trust in (and for) the organization. In addition, the very people tasked to make decisions are too scared of making the wrong one.

WHAT CAN BE DONE?
Here are 6 ways to help your organization become more effective in making decisions.

1.  86 the process
It is often said that nothing kills creativity like a good process.  Approval processes can be vital to success for large organizations.  They can help to manage cost and ensure accountability.  But, once a process is in place it tendsto take on a life of its own.

At times the process becomes so burdensome, that it is easier to just keep the status quo rather than bucking the system. It is important that questions like “Why are we doing this?” be asked on a regular basis.  There should be no process that isn’t scrutinized.

2. Encourage or Force Choice
This is tricky.  This requires managers and leaders to allow employees to make decisions or select new ways to doing things and rewarding them for doing so. This is not the norm for many organizations, departments, or teams.  Reward employees for making decisions.  Support them. Use the decision-making process as a learning opportunity. It will become a practiced skill that they will gain expertise the more they do it.

3. Take Actions To Increase Trust
Every effort should be made to increase trust on a regular basis.  Patrick Lencioni, the author of 5 Dysfunctions of a Team, has shown that the foundation of every successful team is trust.  But, it is often the first area where many teams fail.  There is not an emphasis on trust at organizations where it vanishes so quickly. In order to create high performance organizations building trust is paramount.

4.  Keep Changing
A great lesson can be learned from Ingar Skaug.  He was the CEO of Wilh. Wilhelmsen Lines, ASA a major ship building company.  Through tragedy he helped his company transform itself.  Although very successful ASA had become stagnant and resistant to change.  Skaug knew that this would be its downfall.  He encouraged decision-making that lead to change.

5. Align Culture to Strategy
Lack of decision and indecisiveness comes from being unclear on the path.  The decision of whether to go right or left can be paralyzing, if you do not know what the best path to take.  Leaders have to make sure that they are uncovering the dimensions of their culture and working towards aligning that to the organizational strategy.  Of course, it is necessary to have a strategy first.  It does not have to be a “we will change the world” strategy, but something that tells people where you intend to go.  This should inform every action and be the arbiter of decisions.

6. Have Fun
“Hardly a day goes by without reading an interview with a prominent executive or hearing a knowledgeable observer suggest that having fun at work is important for employee morale and productivity” ~ Robert C. Ford

People are relaxed when they are having fun.  They are confident and more willing to make decisions.  Not to say that it should be party, but fun.  Iron-clad, rule oriented organizations stay stagnant.

Taking these small actions at every level of the organization will increase the speed and ability to make decisions.  It is not a guarantee of perfect decisions.  That is notand should not be the goal.  People in organizations need to be good at deciding and acting.  The old child’s tale about the tortoise and the hare misses the point. The hare was fast but unfocused. If the hare had been intent on winning, the tortoise would have been left in the dust.

Don’t you wish your organization was the nimble hare? Do you want to help your leaders and teams be more decisive. Are you building a culture of trust, reward, and risk-tolerance that allows for healthy decision-making? What are some others ways that you can help keep your teams on the yellow-brick road to a better place?

Anil Saxena is the President of Cube 2.14, an organizational development consulting firm that works with clients to increase both customer and employee engagement while decreasing turnover, improving customer retention, and increasing profitability within organizations.

Saxena is a certified High Impact coach and trainer and a Joint Application Design facilitator. He is also certified by both Rush Systems and IBM as a focus group facilitator. He is an inaugural member of Northwestern University’s Learning and Organizational Change program, and he earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

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