Tag Archives: employee engagement

Meetings are the symptom of bad organisation. Yes, but no, but maybe?

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20130414-191305.jpgFor anyone who works in a large organisation this will resonate. You can back it up with comments you might have heard over the years, like; “meetings suck the life-force out of me”, “that’s two hours of my life I will never get back” and “that was a big waste tax payers / shareholders money”.

Top tip for really dull meetings: pretend you have to visit the bathroom. Go and do some useful work, then return just before the end of the meeting. Nobody will have the courage to ask why you took so long.

Back to the full quote by Peter Drucker, “meetings are the symptom of bad organisation. The fewer meetings the better”.

The point seems to be that meetings represent a failure to properly plan and organise what you are doing. As a result you end up in meetings trying to fix things that haven’t worked. Ultimately if you have to spend time in meetings, you aren’t doing the things that really matter like: making products or delivering services.

There is plenty of research and figures to back up the idea that meetings are a problem. This paper by Romano & Nunamaker analyses a huge amount of the research written about meetings and presents some depressing findings:

  • Many reviews and surveys reveal that meetings dominate workers and managers time and yet are considered to be costly, unproductive and dissatisfying.
  •  The number of meetings and their duration has been steadily increasing.
  •  Studies of managers and knowledge workers reveal that they spend between 25%-80% of their time in meetings.
  • Self estimates of meeting productivity by managers in many different functional areas range from 33% – 47%.

I said it was depressing. Just imagine you are one of those knowledge workers or managers who spend 80% of their time in meetings, of which only 47% of that time is productive. That’s over 40% of your time in work, 2 days a week, doing something that is useless (and we worry about people wasting time on social media…….).

This lack of achievement and the frustration that goes with it has to have an impact upon your level of engagement and sense of job satisfaction. This paper by Rogelberg et al in Human Resource Management (March-April 2010) makes the link between overall job satisfaction and meeting satisfaction. It goes on to suggest that meeting satisfaction could be used as part of job satisfaction measures and employee engagement.

If you fancy a more in-depth look at this topic, and potential solutions, one of the co-authors of the paper, Joseph A. Allen runs the Centre for Meeting Effectiveness Lab  at Creighton University, Omaha, Nebraska. There are some useful links on the page to work that the Lab is doing.

So, we need to ban all meetings! (Not quite yet……Rambo)

This could be one response to the ‘meetings problem’. As attractive as it might seem (to some people) it might actually make things worse. Meetings are very necessary for transparent decision making, relationship building and knowledge exchange. I’ve argued before that knowledge exchange is a social process  and meetings are a good place to achieve this. What we need is better meetings.

Having better meetings depends upon better process and people’s behaviour. Before any of this you need to be confident that you need the meeting in the first place, which links back to the Peter Drucker quote, “the fewer meetings the better”.

Meeting process and behaviours are two things I plan to write some posts about soon. In the meanwhile some more meeting quotes: (there are thousands on the web)

  • “A meeting is an interaction where the unwilling, selected from the uninformed, led by the unsuitable, to discuss the unnecessary, are required to write a report about the unimportant.” Kayser
  • “An employee who needs permission to buy a box of paperclips can spend tens of thousands of dollars worth of employee time on bad meetings.”

So, what’s the PONT?

  1. Meetings are very necessary for many good reasons like; transparent decision making, relationship building and knowledge exchange.
  2. The numbers and duration of meetings for managers and knowledge workers is increasing.
  3. The costs of bad meetings in lost productivity and reduced staff satisfaction are huge. We need to have better meetings, starting now.

Picture Source: http://venturevillage.eu/make-meetings-effective. Some useful tips here on how to make meetings more effective.

20130414-191327.jpgAn old favourite.

Guilt Free Continuous Improvement with Cardboard and Sticky Tape

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Good News! I’ve found a way of not feeling guilty about ‘over’ enjoying myself during the sort of team building events where I have to build the Eiffel Tower out of cardboard, pipe cleaners and sticky tape. Many people will have participated in similar exercises (with variable degrees of enthusiasm) but I suspect that most will be left wondering, “What on earth did that have to do with work?” Well, I’ve found a real world application which is tried and tested, high impact and ‘return on investment proofed’, continuous improvement (CI) technique.

I saw it during an IdeasUK network visit to a manufacturing company where it was presented as part of their CI approach. It involved Lean Process re-design and lots of cardboard and sticky tape. This is what I learned.

  1. As part of their CI approach the organisation routinely reviewed each of their processes. A dedicated team supported local teams to carry out a review of what they did daily and develop improved new processes.
  2. The review started with some data collection and process mapping. There were lots of familiar CI tools used; observe the process, eliminate waste, identify improvements etc. Plenty of flipcharts with process maps and actions were produced, all good solid CI activity.
  3. Now the good bit. The team then created a scale model of their ideal process, using cardboard and sticky tape.  This was fantastic to see and walk through. The team included the smallest detail to ensure the process worked for them. Who better to do this sort of process design than the people who actually know how it works.
  4. The next stage was to build a working prototype and test it for a month. To illustrate the value of this stage I was given an example of how things changed between cardboard scale model and the final construction. A 6 foot plus team member had been on holiday during the cardboard mock-up stage and their place had been taken by someone significantly shorter. The impact of the difference in height became obvious during the prototype stage and adjustments were made. Problem solved.
  5. Finally the process is fixed and routine manufacturing resumes until the next scheduled process review, or some other trigger.

Obviously there is a lot more fine detail involved in this CI activity than outlined here. What I wanted to emphasise was the impact of building the full-scale model using cardboard and sticky tape.

In many improvement activities it is quite common for people to jump straight from good idea to full-scale implementation. The cardboard model is helpful in a number of ways:

  • It allows for a pause to ask the really challenging questions, “Does this really work?” This is potentially less confrontational and more productive than reviewing someone’s ideas written down on paper;
  • It allows people to interact and develop the solutions as they build the model. Better solutions are allowed to emerge as ideas are tested and refined;
  • It engages the people who really know the process;
  • It’s more realistic team building than recreating a French Architectural Icon on a training course; and
  • It’s really good fun.

I know some people may say “…but this is manufacturing, this approach would never work in public service delivery (we are different, we are special)”  All I would say is, why not have a go, cardboard and sticky tape are for life, not just for team building.

So what’s the PONT?

  1. Fully involving the people who do the job in the design of the process they operate is the most effective means of achieving continuous improvement.
  2. Prototyping /scale models are great ways of involving people and testing new ideas.
  3. There is a purpose behind many of the things we do on training courses and team building; we just need to understand what it is and bring them back into work a bit more often.

Picture source: Thanks for the use of the cardboard Eiffel Tower image. http://nycmakesmyheartbeat.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/img_2355.jpg?w=480

This picture shows how far you could take this approach…. there are a surprising number of ‘cardboard office’ images on the internet.

Graphic Recording – My (Very Slow) Time Lapse Photography

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I’m not going to win any prizes for photography here; I just wanted to illustrate some graphic recording in action.

I’m a big fan of using graphics as a method of knowledge exchange and communication.  Previously I’ve mentioned the work of Paul Richardson who did great work at Public Services Wales Summer School and Delta7 who do some fantastic work around engagement and archetypes.  Now I can post about another piece of the jigsaw, graphic recording.

These pictures are by Laura Sorvala (@_auralab) of the work she did at the All in this Together, Co-production Conference held in Cardiff last week. The image was developed over about 60mins and 4 separate speakers.

I think this is an incredibly effective way of capturing the important messages from the conference, in a way people are more likely to share and re-visit.  Enjoy!

My photographs don’t do justice to Laura’s skills. Have a look at Laura’s website and the All in this Together blog for better images.

So, what’s the PONT? (pretty much what I’ve said previously)

  1. Graphic recording is a highly effective way of capturing key learning points (so much better than my notes).
  2. Pictures really do speak a thousand words. People can effectively understand and remember complicated messages through images.
  3. The impact is long-lasting. I’m more likely to re-visit a picture or print it out and pin it on a wall than re-read my scribbled notes.

Dysfunctional organisations can turn a good person bad.

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You may have heard the proverb “if you sup with the devil you need a (very) long spoon”. The idea is that if you mix with bad people you should be careful not to be influenced by them and start behaving badly yourself. It’s a very old sentiment that was mentioned as far back as 1386 in Chaucer’s ‘The Squires Tale’.

This week I got a modern, evidence based example of this aspect of human behavior at a Leadership & Management Wales (LMW) seminar.

“Management behaving badly” was presented by Professor Ralph Fevre of Cardiff University on the findings of a huge piece of research work into ill-treatment at work. The report ‘Insight into ill-treatment in the workplace: patterns, causes and solutions’ summarises the research which involved almost 4000 interviews. The report is well worth reading for anyone interested in HR, employee engagement, organisational development or just being a more effective manager or leader. A few points I took from the seminar:

Problems

  • Small organisations tend to have less of a problem with ill-treatment;
  • Bigger organisations have a higher level of ill-treatment despite ‘proper’ policies (Dignity at work etc) and HR Departments which are supposed to prevent ill-treatment;
  • Many policies and subsequent interventions, to deal with ill-treatment, don’t seem to be effective;
  • Manager against subordinate was the most common form of ill-treatment; and
  • Managers themselves are highly likely to suffer ill-treatment.

Some solutions

  • Manage the managers. Supporting managers to develop their people skills is an essential part of treating people properly, and getting the most out of them. It’s disappointing that the archetype of the technical expert with poor people skills, promoted to a managerial position who then causes havoc was mentioned several times during the session. The evidence suggests that there are still plenty of them out there (have a look at the report case studies).
  • Manage sickness absence properly. The evidence points towards the inappropriate application of sickness absence policies, particularly against people with serious conditions. Implement the policies properly and fairly (train managers to do this), and you prevent some of the ill-treatment.

One finding did stand out for me. This was the importance of the overall culture of an organisation. It was summed up as, “if you have a dysfunctional organisation the levels of ill-treatment will be greater”. This issue around culture is linked to the issue of managers   being the source of ill-treatment against staff, and being the subject of ill-treatment themselves.  It seems like a case study of behavior begets behavior and an example of a ‘vicious circle’ that arises from ill-treatment from (and to) customers and service users. The role of leadership in addressing such a culture and reversing ill-treatment is fundamental, which is probably why LMW put on the seminar. Good choice.

Linking back to the idea at the top of this post….do be careful where you choose to work. If it’s a dysfunctional organisation where ill-treatment is commonplace there is a chance you’ll be on the receiving end of it. I wouldn’t want to crush anyone’s hope and desire to change organisations (or the world) but do be aware that “if you sup with the devil you need a very long spoon”.

So, what’s the PONT?

  1. Ill-treatment of staff does happen in organisations, but is more likely in big compared to small organisations (see the is 150 the magic number post).
  2. If you are a manager, you are likely to receive, as well as, dish out ill-treatment.
  3. Organisational culture has a huge influence on ill-treatment, as well as you, so be careful who you sup with.

Sticking it to the Man! Painted Sparrows on Alcatraz and Disengaged Employees.

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Apologies to any birdwatchers that recognise this as a Painted Bunting, and not a common brown sparrow that has been ‘jazzed up’ by an Alcatraz inmate.

I read about the Alcatraz painted sparrows in a book by former inmate Darwin Coon. Back in the 1960s the Alcatraz prisoners creatively used their painting equipment on the local brown sparrows they had captured. The ‘pimped’ sparrows were then released back into the wild.

This was relatively harmless fun, until the Alcatraz ‘colony of exotic birds’ caught the attention of the press and local branch of the Audubon Society (similar to the British RSPB).  On the ensuing field trip to Alcatraz the hoax was exposed, with considerable embarrassment for the authorities and retribution for the prisoners.

Darwin Coon cites this as one of the examples of ‘sticking it to the man’ he experienced during his many years of incarceration. The idea struck a chord with me. Over the years I’ve encountered many people who claim to be ‘sticking it to the man’. Frequently this is at work and appears to have a lot to do with employee disengagement.

The Urban Dictionary (a great resource for decoding my kids conversations) defines ‘stick it to the man’ as, “to perform an act of vandalism or general civil disobedience in order to oppose the power of the man”. You might now ask, “who is The Man?”

The Man is a slightly nebulous concept that can be both positive and negative. For ‘stick it to’ purposes ‘The Man’ is a very powerful and shadowy corporation or government body that is acting oppressively and ‘keeping us down’. It’s not possible to actually identify ‘The Man’, which brings me to the link with employee disengagement.

On occasions I’ve heard people complain about ‘Them’ as being the cause of their problems in work. When questioned on who ‘Them’ are they give a vague explanation, generally pointed in the direction of ‘people at the top’. They might as well be talking about ‘The Man’.  It’s disappointing how much effort some of these people then put into ‘sticking it to the man’ and dragging down an organisation. I’ve heard this behavior referred to as ‘organisational terrorism’ or plain old meetings sabotage. I’m sure many of us will know of an individual who is working hard, ‘sticking it to the man’ in their workplace.

If you fancy practical advice on ‘sticking it to the man’ have a look at this video. As a parody it’s great, but it does make think, “what is the point?” At the end of the day, acts of vandalism or disobedience against The Man (persons unknown and unseen) are ultimately pointless.

Returning to disengaged employees its worth thinking about what can be done about it. One suggestion I heard is to make ‘The Man’ more visible. Apparently it is far easier to justify being negative towards the unknown or unseen than it is to someone who you recognise, and who knows your name. There may be a lesson here for leaders and managers to be more visible and get to know their employees. Maybe then there wouldn’t be a ‘Them’ or ‘The Man’ to ‘stick it to’?

Back on Alcatraz ‘The Man’ (The Warden) was pretty obvious and the regime was oppressive by design. I think ‘sticking it to the man’ by jazzing up a few sparrows wasn’t that bad (animal rights permitting) after all, according to Darwin Coon the alternatives could be much worse.

So, what’s the PONT?

  1. Disengaged employees (like prisoners) can be incredibly resourceful and creative in acts of ‘sticking it to the man’.
  2. Distant, aloof, disconnected or disengaged managers can create a sense of ‘them over there’ or ‘The Man’, where acts of ‘sticking it to’ become much easier to justify.
  3. Look out for painted sparrows in your organisation (small acts of rebellion). They may a sign of something bigger under the surface.

Photo source: Painted Bunting http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Painted_Bunting_by_Dan_Pancamo.jpg

Engaged or actively disengaged employees. Where do you focus energy?

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Here is a guest post from my good friend Ena Lloyd. A better biog will follow once I get some decent internet connection in Tuscany. Thanks Ena…..

I also attended the IdeasUk Employee Engagement network meeting, hosted by the Wales Audit Office in Cardiff, where it was great to meet colleagues not only from the Welsh Public Sector, but also the Voluntary and Private Sector who I fully intend to meet up with again to exchange some ideas.  There was great buzz on the day, particularly at the end of the workshops. All three workshops  were very engaging (pardon the pun but true!), very different, and were hosted by:-

They represent very different parts of the UK business but they all had two key themes running through their workshops:-

1.      Keep it simple; and

2.      You have to continually evolve to keep staff engaged.

What I also took away from all three workshops was that all three organisation had re-launched their staff engagement schemes several times since its initial launch and most importantly, that it’s OK to do this.  In fact, it’s essential for a number of reasons, namely, staff turnover, advancement of new technology and also to simply remind staff of the scheme. They on average, re-launch or update every two to three years. They viewed it very much as an evolving process.

There was an added moment of realisation for me in the Ricoh workshop hosted by Rob Bland and Chris Nicholls.  They were talking about the results of their latest staff engagement and the ratio staff engagement at their Telford.  They showed a recent slide which highlighted the level of engagement amongst their staff in terms of:-

  • Engaged;
  • Disengaged; and
  • Actively disengaged;

What Chris Nicholls said next, brought ‘yes of course moment’ to mind. He simple pointed to the part of the slide which highlighted  the engaged staff, and said, we only focus on these staff. Adding we do some work with the middle ground of staff who are not engaged to see what we can to try to convert them to being engaged. However we don’t not worry about the actively disengaged,…………………… Why waste our energy, as we are unlikely to convert them, We focus only the staff who are engaged and make no apology for this.

When Chris said that, i immediately saw parallels between the concept of focussing on engaged staff and the mantra which is constantly being repeated on the successful House of Tiny Tearaways programme by the eminently sensible Dr Tanya Byron, child psychologist. She constantly repeats to parents struggling with the challenging behaviour of their young children, acknowledge and praise positive/good behaviour in children.  Ignore or don’t acknowledge poor behaviour.  Well it’s just the same for adults really isn’t it!

What I’m taking away from this is simply this, direct your resources where there is greatest impact. If some people don’t want to engage, don’t waste your energies.

Employee Engagement = Kaizen + Passion in the West Midlands (Ricoh Telford to be exact)

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A while back when I was writing Kaizen! Toast v Beer, Who Wins? I came across this quote “continuous improvement is the result of continuous involvement”. I couldn’t remember where and ended up  searching absolutely loads of websites offering advice on Kaizen, Lean manufacturing and employee engagement, including a few where you can buy it as a motivational poster (Amazon $33.99).

As good as the quote is, I’d like to add in passion, West Midlands style, Ricoh in Telford to be exact.

Recently I visited the Ricoh factory in Telford as part of an IdeasUK networking event. Ricoh in Telford have a very good reputation, which includes their employee engagement.  Following the visit three things stand out for me about how Ricoh achieve this success; passion, trust and involvement. These factors are all fundamental to their employee engagement and Kaizen continuous improvement approaches.

Passion. I must admit that ‘passion’ wasn’t something I was expecting to encounter in a photocopier factory somewhere out west of Wolverhampton, but I did, in bucket loads. In fact I met Chris Nicholls the Manufacturing Division General Manager who is responsible for the company value of passion.

Organisational values in my experience are pretty pointless unless they are demonstrated through behaviours, particularly by leaders. Chris and his Continuous Improvement Team demonstrate passion completely. They have passion for continuous improvement, passion for delivering a better product to the customers and passion for helping the employees do the best job they can. This was totally evident in everything they said and did and rubbed off on everyone they encountered, including visitors.

Trust. Trust is a word that is frequently used in relation to employee engagement and continuous improvement. Easy to say, but hard to demonstrate. All I’ll say is that the approach I saw at Ricoh was completely based on trusting people. The expression, “you are the expert in your job, we trust you to do it’” was used on several occasions. It was fascinating watching how trust was demonstrated on the factory floor.  People would step in, help others, clean up, move potential blockages and just cover each others backs when they were busy. Total teamwork based on trusting your co-workers. The only other place where I’ve seen this level of trust and teamwork is in a Fire and Rescue Service.

Involvement. Involving people in their jobs as well as a wider continuous improvement mindset across the organisation is key to engagement.  Perhaps the most striking example I saw was of one of the warehouse workers who was given an award for the best improvement idea that month. That was great, but in fact he’d had more improvement ideas in total than anyone else on site that year. This was remarkable when you consider he was actually an agency worker on a temporary contract. It’s fantastic that you can get that depth of involvement and engagement from someone who’s with you on a temporary basis. So often you hear the opposite about ‘temps’ being disengaged.

Ricoh in Telford is an inspiring place and Chris Nicholls is putting some material together on the approach to engagement he’s developed there. It’s well worth following what he’s got to say on Twitter @ChrisNicholls12.

Back to the quote, I know it’s not terribly fashionable to like motivational posters (all a bit 1990’s) but I do like “continuous improvement is the result of continuous involvement”. I think it effectively sums up the link between employee engagement and Kaizen quite nicely. Throw in some passion and it would be perfect. Employee Engagement = Kaizen + Passion.

So, what’s the PONT?

  1. Continuous involvement (employee engagement) will deliver continuous improvement (Kaizen).
  2. Passion isn’t a word we use, or a behaviour we demonstrate enough in the workplace. Be passionate about what you do and you’ll probably achieve more.
  3. Trust people to do their jobs. They are the experts.