In Part Two – Segment Two will complete the discussion on a trusting organization. These 10 principles of trust when employed consistently to your entire organization without bias will build a bridge of loyalty that will stand against the elements. People do not willingly leave organizations built on moorings as strong as trust.
This article will examine the last five Building Blocks of Trust. All of the building blocks are important and it is essential to note that you cannot selectively skip one in favor of another. Companies that score high in the Trust Index will see lower turnover and greater productivity.
Figure 1: The Second Five Building Blocks of Trust
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Frank McIntosh is author of The Relational Leader (Course Technology PTR, Cengage Learning 2010). During his 36 year career, Frank has worked with many of the most recognized companies and executives in the world. He has provided consulting services for peers across the country and helped initiate Junior Achievement programs in Ireland, the Ivory Coast, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Uzbekistan. Frank was inducted into the Delaware Business Leaders Hall of Fame in October 2008, one of 38 individuals so honored and the first not-for-profit executive to receive this distinction in Delaware’s 300 year business history. To read Frank’s complete biography, click here.
For more information regarding this subject, visit Frank McIntosh at his website www.FJMcIntosh.com.
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In good times and bad, organizations have learned about the impact of thinking that employees are dispensable. Such thought is particularly unwise as the economy improves after a downturn.
During the past few years, companies have lopped off employees in the hundreds of thousands for reasons of economic survival. The staff gaps that resulted are now being felt as those same companies are faced with competition both for business and the top talent they still possess.
Slowly, we are seeing a shift from a buyer’s to a seller’s labor market. There may be a high unemployment problem but HR executives are still complaining about a significant skill gap, that is, a difference in proficiency between the majority of individuals in the market for jobs and those that companies want in their labor force.
Rather than having just a replacement mentality, human resources needs a more strategic approach to the situation—one that finds answers to the coming high turnover. They need a solution that also addresses the bad reputation that the recession has wrought on many companies and that identifies cultural changes that will attract new employees.
Evidence has shown a high correlation between employee job satisfaction and engagement and employee retention and recruitment.
Here are some strategies to engage and retain top talent:
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To learn more about the American Management Association, click here.
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In my previous article I discussed creating a “learning – thinking” organization. Part Two will be presented in two segments and focuses on creating a trusting organization. To be trusted is to be authentic, a trait of a relational leader. Authenticity emerges from The Building Blocks of Trust as the foundation of the leadership quotient.
This article will examine the first five Building Blocks of Trust. Companies that score high in the Trust Index will see lower turnover and greater productivity.
Figure 1: The First Five Building Blocks of Trust
Hi there! This article is available for free. Login or register as a StrategyDriven Personal Business Advisor Self-Guided Client by:
Frank McIntosh is author of The Relational Leader (Course Technology PTR, Cengage Learning 2010). During his 36 year career, Frank has worked with many of the most recognized companies and executives in the world. He has provided consulting services for peers across the country and helped initiate Junior Achievement programs in Ireland, the Ivory Coast, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Uzbekistan. Frank was inducted into the Delaware Business Leaders Hall of Fame in October 2008, one of 38 individuals so honored and the first not-for-profit executive to receive this distinction in Delaware’s 300 year business history. To read Frank’s complete biography, click here.
For more information regarding this subject, visit Frank McIntosh at his website www.FJMcIntosh.com.
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Even if you do not have an actual figure, most business leaders realize that there is a substantial cost to employee turnover. This series of articles will address relational leadership methods you can employ right now that will tip the turnover scale to your favor.
The Relational Leader presents a framework to use as a compass point so that you can project a consistent message and methodology to your people. The book will expose you to the principles of relational leadership and show you how the principles when applied in tandem, can produce substantial results.
People are the core of this leadership style. How you approach people and the environment that you provide for them to work in revolves around seven attributes called: Fairness, Character, Trust, Fun, Celebration, Attentiveness, and Purpose.
You will understand how these attributes affect people through the eyes and experiences of highly successful leaders. You will learn how to put the attributes in play for yourself in your own leadership situation.
This book will explore how our institutional leaders can make claim once again to ethical, fair, and purposeful practices that underscore the value of human beings as the linchpins of our society. The methods presented in the book will help you build a motivated and responsive team within your workgroup.
You do not want to stop turnover; you want to control it. Not all your hires will perform as you hope and some people will just naturally burn out. How can you mitigate these circumstances?
Today’s article will address creating a ‘learning – thinking’ organization. I will share a few key thoughts to get you started.
Low turnover and effective recruiting go hand in hand. Your business environment and culture bear heavily upon your ability to attract and retain the best people. The following are some of the significant success factors in building a winning environment. Your people:
See themselves as growing.
Feel their contributions – big or small – are valued and recognized.
Appreciate that significance is placed on building relationships through shared experiences.
Observe evidence of an overriding commitment to people in the organization.
It’s a great compliment to invest time and money in an individual’s development. A learning – thinking organization will have development plans for the company and personal plans for individuals (based on their strengths) that increase their capacity. The following is an example to improve organizational needs:
Assess individual and company strengths while also determining the top three or four organizational needs.
Create a Strength Inventory for the company (see Table 1 below) on a spread sheet.
Identify top strengths (individual or organization) that can positively impact needs.
Assemble diverse teams by appropriate strength to address the organization’s needs (e.g. 5 people with technical strengths).
Strength Inventory – Sports Stars, Inc.
Individual
Strengths
Ted Williams
Technical*
Disciplined
Analytical
Larry Bird
Competitive
Doer
Adaptable
Bobby Orr
Self-Assured
Developer
Energized*
Tom Brady
Strategic
Communicator
Deliberate
Organization
Strengths
Sports Stars, Inc.
Blend of Experience*
(range of people with
different times on job)
Market Share*
Location
* Top 4 Strengths to be used in needs analysis and improvement
Table 1: Strength Inventory Example
In the example below, the organizational needs appear at the top of each column. For illustration there are two strengths from both the organization and the individual. I assigned them to the needs as appropriate. The teams assembled by strength concentrate on improving the need assigned. You will need multiple teams from each strength area. People representing the organizational strengths are selected ‘at large’ and have demonstrated an impact on that strength in their daily work. Figure 1: Organizational Need to Individual Strength Alignment
The matrix that you have created becomes the key to a functioning thinking – learning organization. It will help you arrive at effective strategic decisions thus maximizing success in your company. The concept of building on strengths is a powerful motivator. People like to do things they do well. By helping them to do them even better, it makes sense that they will begin to contribute to the whole at a much higher level. Also, they will feel a personal commitment to the growth of the business, because it becomes a part of who they are.
A learning structure built on these principles will give you the opportunity to celebrate the contributions of people throughout the organization. You will also create multiple opportunities for meaningful shared experiences resulting in a bond that will give cohesion and a shared will to succeed. Finally, it becomes abundantly clear that leadership is committed, first and foremost to its people.
People in organizations like this do not leave. People who find organizations like this want to get in. This is one example of relational leadership at work; there are many more.
About the Author
Frank McIntosh is author of The Relational Leader (Course Technology PTR, Cengage Learning 2010). During his 36 year career, Frank has worked with many of the most recognized companies and executives in the world. He has provided consulting services for peers across the country and helped initiate Junior Achievement programs in Ireland, the Ivory Coast, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Uzbekistan. Frank was inducted into the Delaware Business Leaders Hall of Fame in October 2008, one of 38 individuals so honored and the first not-for-profit executive to receive this distinction in Delaware’s 300 year business history. To read Frank’s complete biography, click here.
For more information regarding this subject, visit Frank McIntosh at his website www.FJMcIntosh.com.
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StrategyDriven Podcasts focus on the tools and techniques executives and managers can use to improve their organization’s alignment and accountability to ultimately achieve superior results. These podcasts elaborate on the best practice and warning flag articles on the StrategyDriven website.
the benefits leaders realize as a result of better engaging their employees
observable behaviors, policies, and organizational structures that disenfranchise employees
precursor indicators that can be used as an ‘early warning system’ to detect the onset of employee disenfranchisement
processes, monitoring systems, and performance measures leaders can use to recognize the onset of disenfranchisement
the extent leaders should enlist the assistance of outside advisors to evaluate their business environment and workforce sentiments and the benefits of doing so
key attributes separating leaders who successfully engage employees from those who do not
We are pleased to announce that Michael has made the electronic version of his book, Fired Up or Burned Out: How to Reignite Your Team’s Passion, Creativity, and Productivity, available for download at no cost to our readers. Simply click on the link above to download your copy of this remarkable book on how to better engage employees; igniting their creativity, imagination, and spirits to the success of the organization.
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About the Author
Michael Lee Stallard, author of Fired Up or Burned Out, is co-Founder and President of E Pluribus Partners, a consulting firm specializing in helping leaders create ‘Connection Cultures’ to form strong bonds among the management, employees, and customers of an organization. Michael’s work has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Leader to Leader, Human Resource Executive, and Fox Business Now. He has spoken at conferences organized by The Conference Board, GE, Google, NASA, Johnson & Johnson and Yale-New Haven Hospital. To read Michael’s full biography, click here.
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Frank McIntosh is author of The Relational Leader
(Course Technology PTR, Cengage Learning 2010). During his 36 year career, Frank has worked with many of the most recognized companies and executives in the world. He has provided consulting services for peers across the country and helped initiate Junior Achievement programs in Ireland, the Ivory Coast, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Uzbekistan. Frank was inducted into the Delaware Business Leaders Hall of Fame in October 2008, one of 38 individuals so honored and the first not-for-profit executive to receive this distinction in Delaware’s 300 year business history. To read Frank’s complete biography, click here.
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StrategyDriven Podcasts focus on the tools and techniques executives and managers can use to improve their organization’s alignment and accountability to ultimately achieve superior results. These podcasts elaborate on the best practice and warning flag articles on the StrategyDriven website.
and co-Founder and President of E Pluribus Partners, shares with us his insights and illustrative examples regarding:
Michael Lee Stallard, author of 
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