Probably the only time you hear people using the word LOVE is to describe something they really like, such as “oh I love your shoes, they are so cute!” or “I love my new car” or “I love to ride my bike in the mornings.” We seldom use the word LOVE to describe how we feel about someone, unless it is a workplace romance – but that is not what this post is about.
The SmartChange™ Blog
Why a Get-down-to-Business Approach Isn’t’ Enough?
Have you seen this…
A chief executive flies in to have a skip-level meeting with the troops. Naturally he wants them to feel free to open up to him and share things that would help him be a better leader. The time is limited, and of course in addition to ‘hearing them out’ he also has a handful of slides he wants to share with them – his vision, the strategy, the top priorities, and how employees can contribute. All good information, all well-intended. So, looking at the clock, he gets down to business! After he leaves, comes the meeting-after-the-meeting with your colleagues and you realize that nobody felt totally comfortable speaking their minds with the boss.
At Best Places to Work, Trust, Pride, and Camaraderie Overshadow Pay?
The Great Place to Work Institute just released their list of the 25 Best Multinational Workplaces. And once again, critics and believers are out in full force touting these ‘great news’ or denouncing such ‘corporate propaganda.’
According to the article in the USA Today, ”Firms that rank high on the consulting and research group’s lists of great employers have three traits in common, he says: employee trust in management, pride in the company and camaraderie with colleagues.”
“At the best companies, even the lowest-level employees know they are part of the team,” Tolovi says. “They know that they have a common goal.”
Lessons from Long Distance Running: Flexibility
This is part of the series “Lessons from Change Management Strategies and Long Distance Running.”
Flex·i·bil·i·ty (noun /ˌfleksəˈbilətē/)
1. The quality of bending easily without breaking
- athletes gained improved flexibility in their ankles
2. The ability to be easily modified
- I enjoyed the flexibility of the new system
3. Willingness to change or compromise
- the organization has shown flexibility in applying the new process
Soon after I started my training, pain developed and I learned that I needed to develop a lot more flexibility, that I was stretching too little, AND that I was doing it the wrong way. Without new ways to gain needed flexibility, the pain would continue and I could get hurt for good!
The Effects of Organizational Change on Psychological Stress and Job Performance
Last year (March 2008) the Journal of International Business & Economicspublished a study by Phapruke Ussahawanitchakit and Chaiyot Sumritsakun on the effect of Organizational Change (OC) on employees’ stress and performance. Among other findings, they reported:
- OC results in higher psychological stress (employees feeling psychologically and emotionally drained due to pressure during the organizational change).
- OC leads to lower job performance due to stress.
- Moreover, neither “organizational communication and support moderate the relationships” between organizational change, psychological stress, and job performance.
The implications are significant for a number of reasons.
Confidence over successful organizational change falling
Based on a survey of 1,100 business leaders, the Regus/JBA study shows that 83% are expecting change but only 61% feel confident it will be successful based on past performance. This leaves a “change gap” of 22%, the report states. Read more… http://www.management-issues.com/2009/8/14/research/confidence-over-successful-organizational-change-falling.asp
My take…3 keys to increasing confidence in change: