Inspiration Conversation

How often have you wondered, “Why can’t that person just change”?

I mean, if someone really wants to, can’t they just immediately begin to act/think/speak differently?  New research indicates it’s not so easy. Technological breakthroughs have enabled scientists to gain greater insight into how the brain works – for our purposes the most relevant data has to do with how the brain responds to change. Recognition and Reward Systems largely exist to serve as change agents that reinforce right behaviors.  With that in mind, the new research provides some insight that can help create high performing RRS.

The work that I think is most relevant has been done by David Rock and Jeffrey Schwartz.  Over the next few days, I’m going to communicate some of their findings and add my thoughts on why that information matters to anyone involved in people strategy and/or the creation and operation of RRS. 

So, interesting finding number one:

At the level of individual neurons, brains are built to detect changes in the environment and send out strong signals to alert us to anything unusual – which pushes us to act more emotionally and more impulsively.

Now, given that all of us are built slightly different and will respond in slightly different ways, we all are hard wired to react to a change in our environment – and for most of us, that hard wired response feels like a voice screaming “NO!” inside our heads.

If a RRS exists to communicate and support right behaviors, what must it include to allow for a significant portion of the audience that feels immediately threatened when confronted with a situation that asks for a change in behaviors?  I’ll share my insight in full at the end of the series, but my answer to this question involves time, communication, training and leadership.  

I recently encountered a formula for the stages of life a team goes through. The team can be small, or the team can be an entire organization - the dynamic is the same regardless of the numbers.

The stages are as follows:

Forming - start-up phase characterized by high energy, creation of vision and goals

Storming - the "honeymoon" is over, and goals and cohesiveness must be reestablished

Norming - fine tuning stage as tasks are being completed

Performing - tasks are completed, and competence is established

Transforming - accomplishments are celebrated, and future direction is established

As I thought about it and worked through the implications, it became plain to me that these stages also apply to projects that occur in a work setting, including a work product many of you are familiar with - a recognition and rewards system. In your role as the leader - either of a team or a recognition system - which of the stages are most critical and need the greatest amount of attention? The stage that we all work toward is certainly "Performing" - it's where the payoff for all the hard work comes. In this stage all is well, everyone knows what's going on and problems are minimal. The Performing stage is important to a leader as the validation of the vision established earlier and the resources applied to achieve that vision; but it's dangerous for a leader to "camp" in this stage or in the preceding "Norming" stage (which is really just a warm-up for the Performing stage).

In your leadership role, you should be spending most of your time creating vision and energy (Forming); maintaining a steady hand through difficulties when others want to take an easy, but incorrect path (Storming); and evaluating your current situation to look for opportunities for improvement and to ensure you are preparing for future conditions that may be different than present circumstances (Transforming).

In my work, I frequently encounter companies where recognition and rewards systems are old, stale, and ineffective. Significant money is being spent and wasted because leadership hit "Performing" at some point in the past and just stayed there, either ignoring or not realizing that, at some point, circumstances and environment changed such that the system was no longer working. All of us "own" our work product and must provide some measure of leadership to create an environment where continuous improvement is practiced and appreciated. It can be hard, because you're purposefully leaving a comfort zone, but it's critical if you want to enjoy long-term success.

Regards,
Tom

It was a great experience to be in DC speaking to people responsible for understanding issues and crafting legislation designed to strengthen our country.  The people I spoke with were interested and thoughtful.  They asked good questions and seemed genuinely interested in understanding my perspective.  Participating in the effort felt patriotic to me and it caused a renewed respect for our country and our system of government. 

Tom

I'm a "change person" - new ideas, new surroundings and new experiences energize me.  In my role as the leader of a company that helps clients develop employee engagement strategies, I'm usually on the side of the change equation that is creating the vision for what the future could look like and then facilitating the change.  I get to see the change before it happens.  Recently, the "change tables" have been turned and I learned something in the process.

All of us are aware of the new technologies and applications that are prevalent in business today (internet based apps, social networking, communication tools).  I have been working to adapt to the "new tools" and to become proficient with them.  It's been a struggle...  I have so many "old school" habits that I am forced to change - the way I think, the way I communicate, the way I spend time - and it really feels awkward to me.  There have been times my resolve has weakened and I've said to myself, "forget it...I'm far enough along in my career that I don't need to worry about this stuff" - bad thinking and I'm trying to banish those thoughts.

I'm experiencing what it feels like to have change "forced" on me.  It's uncomfortable, it takes time to adapt, to learn how to think differently, act differently, speak and write differently... Going through this process has not made me any less inclined to seek out healthy change and to be a change agent; but it has reminded me that people need time to process change.  How much time?  I don't know - it probably depends on the type of change and the severity of the change.  I know that I will be more aware of the need to plan for a "grace period" during times of change to allow people to deal with the complex emotions around doing things differently than they're accustomed to.

Tom

The United Nations just released a report stating that the U.S. “leads the world in productivity”. It went on to say that the U.S. is second to Norway in the amount of wealth produced per working hour. In simple terms, the productivity results are a function of longer hours while the wealth production per hour is a result of those hours being used well. The report credits U.S. success to leadership in information technology, corporate organization, competition and our international trade practices.

Certainly, these are positive results for the U.S. For discussions sake, let’s reduce these findings to the point where they are relevant to your company…

• Your employees are working, on average, more hours than most companies in the world.
• Your company will utilize leading edge technology to equip employees with the best possible tools to do their jobs.
• Your company will seek organizational design that will maximize employee productivity.
• Your company is facing fierce competition and will do what it takes to stay on top or get to the top.
• Your company is aggressively pursuing the global market for customers, business partners and employees.

Now, let’s put ourselves in the place of an “average worker” – the person in the middle – they like their job but don’t love it, are good at their job but not great. Remember that this person represents the majority of our workforce and that our company could not function without them.

• I work too much.
• I like that my company invests in the best, but I wish they helped me understand how to better use the tools…
• I heard we’re considering a merger. Will I have a job?
• I heard we won that account. Did my contribution matter?
• I don’t understand the people I’m supposed to work with.

I believe the above sentiments represent the thinking of much of the workplace in most of our companies. So, what to do?

If you’re reading this, at least part of your job involves workplace recognition and reward practices. While it would be silly to presume that a strong recognition and reward system would address and resolve all these issues, we can have a positive impact.

Make sure your system recognizes behaviors – at least some of which can be performed and recognized by every job description in the company. Recognize people for improving themselves – training, community service, wellness. Use your system as a means for senior leadership to communicate the things that are important to them. Recognize great performances and use them as a model for future great performance. Design in the ability to recognize teams. Operate a strong peer-to-peer recognition program. Enable system-wide reporting that gives all levels of management exposure to who’s recognizing, who’s being recognized and what they’re being recognized for.

Don’t make the mistake of operating your recognition and reward system exclusively for the people that are already operating at a high level – consider the “Average Worker” and the needs they have. Research and best practice examples support the efficacy of a broad approach to recognition and rewards. Odds are, your company will benefit with this approach.

Regards,

Tom