Blog, cont'd,  Susan Seitel, WFC Resources

December 28, 2009

A new survey on happiness and satisfaction by executive coach Marshall Goldsmith and marketing assistant professor Kelly Goldsmith has come up with some pretty interesting conclusions, and some good coaching for employers. They published them in the Dec. 21st BusinessWeek.

These two defined short-term satisfaction as "happiness" and long-term benefit as "meaning," and examined the relationship between the two, polling more than 3,000 carefully chosen managers, entrepreneurs and professionals, all well-educated, split almost evenly between the sexes.

They found an incredibly high correlation between happiness and meaning, both at work and at home. And those who experienced happiness and meaning at work tended also to experience them outside of work. Those who were miserable on the job were usually miserable at home, and it wasn't about hours worked. They had no significant correlation with either happiness or meaning experienced at work or at home.

Feeling challenged is linked to greater satisfaction, so challenge yourself, say these researchers. Rather than blaming our jobs, our managers, and our customers – or our friends, family members, and communities – for our negative work-life experience, we might be better served by looking in the mirror.

Here's a key takeaway for employers: Satisfaction with work increased only if the amount of meaning (long-term benefit) experienced by employees simultaneously increased. The article didn't further define benefit, but we assume it could be perceived benefit for either the employee, the end user or customer, or the company. It's kind of a no-brainer, but the New Year may be a good time to look with employees at the "meaning" of their work.

What else can companies do differently?

These researchers have a suggestion. You might stop asking, "What can the company do to increase employees' experience of happiness and meaning at work?" which encourages dependency. Instead, managers can encourage employees to ask themselves, "What can I do to increase my experience of happiness and meaning at work?" This strategy may produce a higher return in employee commitment – and do so at a lower cost.

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December 17, 2009

Flexibility is at a tipping point

Here's the big question. Can you continue to count on fear to push productivity? There's no question about the impact of the fear factor now. A recent study by Monster.com and the Human Capital Institute found nearly half of workers saying their productivity has been affected by a fear of being laid off. (It doesn't say whether it's been negatively or positively affected, but those we talk to say fear is pushing them to give up their flexibility, show up early, leave late and work hard.) The study said most workers think employers are exploiting the recession to drive longer hours and lower pay.

Who would choose to work in that kind of atmosphere if they didn't have to? Experts agree that when the economy does heat up again, employers could find themselves with valued employees jumping ship. Now is the time to put retention measures in place. And we can all learn, as we usually do, from the actions of leading companies.

Last Tuesday, the Families and Work Institute had a conference call that featured Sandy Burud, Brad Harrington and Ellen Galinsky, each offering us evidence of what those companies are doing, and the payoff.

We were especially interested in Burud's analysis of what Working Mother's "100 Best" are up to, where they stand in creating a culture where flexible ways of working thrive. "Notice the verb," she said. "Not where flexible work was allowed but in which it thrives."

This is truly a new paradigm. Flexible work is no longer just a negotiated, formal FWA, said Burud, FlexPaths' Chief Strategy Officer. "It's the ability to flex when or where you work, as you need to. For 94% of the 100 Best, it‘s not a 'nice to have' or a way of responding to employees, valuable as that is. It’s an imperative – essential to the business strategy."

Not only does it help retain all that talent that otherwise may be jumping ship when they're able, it's part of sustainability, facilities planning and disaster planning. "When teams are equipped and skilled at working virtually, operations can continue…sometimes with little or no interruption," said Burud. (Disaster planners are starting to require that teams and execs are equipped and trained to work virtually.) These companies are integrating flexibility into hiring (98%) and diversity (91%). And 87% are training managers to make it real. (We're currently customizing our flexibility and telework e-courses for four employers.)

Next steps? Taking advantage of improved technology, and getting a better handle on metrics and outcomes. In a nutshell, said Burud, "you can pass the word that the bar has just been raised. Offering flex programs was once a cutting-edge thing to do. Now, having a genuinely flexible culture is the new standard for employers of choice. It’s no longer enough to simply ‘offer’ flexible work options. Now, you need to make sure the culture legitimizes and even encourages it. It’s a tipping point to celebrate."

Click here to comment!  (We welcome your comments. They'll come in the form of an email to me. We'll publish them here just as you write them, signed or unsigned.)

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December 11, 2009

In a focus group we observed recently, one employee after another said they while they once had a semblance of flexibility, now they were back to an 8-to-5-in-the-office situation, working their tails off and making sure their every move was observed by someone who would vouch for them when layoffs were discussed.

Knowing the way to employees' hearts may not seem too important right this minute. But I thought a recent BusinessWeek article, The coming fight for executive talent, was pretty interesting. Whether you can hear it or not, it starts out, studies indicate that a time bomb is ticking in C-suites worldwide, and its shock waves will resonate for decades. The ticking bomb? An unfilled need for leaders, and heightened competition for recruiting them. Coming soon: a mass exodus, as irritated employees flee the companies that have been stressing productivity above humanity.

Flexibility is such a no-brainer. It does what employees want and also does what companies want. It attracts and holds the talent you'll need, increases productivity and improves morale. But if you don't have it now, waiting till after the exodus begins to implement it may be waiting too long.

Here's a quick summary of a few simple steps for designing a more flexible culture:

First, recognizing that you may not yet have top management support for examining the benefits of culture change, figure out what kind of a business case it will take to get that support. What's keeping your top executives up at night? We've got reams of evidence that says workplace flexibility and a supportive culture can ease a multitude of problems. Just ask us.

It might take the efforts of a task force to do the research, build the business case and make recommendations for action. Get permission to put a task force together to explore the options of increasing bottom line results by implementing culture change. If you're not the one, find someone to take charge of the effort. Then form a representative group (including union members if appropriate).

Together, create a vision for your company's culture. Set goals based on your shared vision and begin to build a business case. Interview top management and conduct surveys and focus groups to determine the impact of work-life conflicts on work. Which work-life issues may be robbing the organization of their time? Collect some answers to these questions, among others:

• What are their perceptions of their workplace, its culture and management practices?

• What do they see as their department's goals and how committed are they to producing results?

• How engaged and excited are they about working here?

• What kinds of flexibility would they use if they had the opportunity?

•  How well has the company communicated about current programs and practices, and how satisfied are they with what already exists?

Collect and analyze all the data to determine what policies and guidelines could be effective. Begin piloting flexible work arrangements, training managers and staff and redesigning jobs, separating tasks that need face-to-face contact from those with measurable results that can be done independently, making jobs appropriate for at least one or two days of flexible work arrangements. Start small with pilots of six weeks to three months, set goals, decide how you'll know success when you see it, and evaluate results. Then communicate what you've learned. Need help? Just ask us. We've done this many times and know that it works.

Click here to comment!  (We welcome your comments. They'll come in the form of an email to me. We'll publish them here just as you write them, signed or unsigned.)

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December 7, 2009

We've just discovered a Website you may already know all about, but it was new to us, and pretty amazing. It's called Flat World Knowledge. Its purpose: Free textbooks, any time, anywhere, online.

We discovered it because of discussion of the Great Places to Work Institute's theories of what really makes a workplace great, and we'll get to that in a minute. But first, where's the rub, when you can get all this free stuff? Well actually (as my four-year-old grandson likes to say) it doesn't look like there is any. "Our books," says their site, "might feel like your current book – for a minute. They are written by leading experts and are peer-reviewed, edited, and highly developed . . . supported by test banks, ppt notes, instructor manuals, print desk copies, and knowledgeable service representatives. There the similarity ends.

Instead of $100 plus, our books are FREE online. We don't even require registration! Students enter the URL they're given by their instructor and start reading. It's that easy. No tricks. No popup ads. No "a premium subscription is needed for that".

Are you reading this feeling a bit jaded? Something must be coming – some advertising, spam, a charge after a trial period, lock-in to a product, something. Breathe. Relax. It’s just not coming.

Our business model eliminates the catch. We're giving away great textbooks and making them open because it solves real problems for students and instructors. In so doing, we are creating a large market for our product. We then turn around and sell things of value to that large market – more convenient ways to consume our free book (print, audio, PDF) and efficient ways to study (study aids). Sure, we’ll make less money per student than the big guys. But that’s okay. We’ll be selling to a lot more of them, and we’ll be doing it for a lot less money (thanks to technology like web-hosted services, XML, print-on-demand, and more). Like we said… just a smarter way to do business. For all of us.
 
So that's it. And now, click here for the neat dissection they did of the Great Places to Work Institute's conclusions. In a nutshell, they've categorized it into work redesign, work-life quality (including flexible work arrangements), family friendly programs, programs for those who are unmarried and without children, comp and benefits, wages and salaries and incentive programs. Each has been developed and explained in detail, making a guide for creating a wonderful place to work. But it makes it clear at the beginning that the real key is trust between managers and staff.

Click here to comment!  (We welcome your comments. They'll come in the form of an email to me. We'll publish them here just as you write them, signed or unsigned.)

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