Tags |
|
|
Will You Add? - What Makes a Great Working Environment?
Would you like to improve on your management skills? Whether you are a business owner, an executive, mid level manager, or beginning supervisor you can develop your skills which will increase the productivity of many of the people who report to you. Though simple in concept, these skills may require practice and dedication to master, unless you are a “natural” manager. (Even “natural” managers can improve their skills, and if you are a “natural,” you already know that you can be even more effective.)Working with people requires interpersonal skills that can come more easily to some people than others. Especially if you have been promoted because you have great technical skills and experience, you will want to avoid becoming a victim to the “Peter Principle.” The definition of the Peter Principle is as follows…The theory that employees within an organization will advance to their highest level of competence and then be promoted to and remain at a level at which they are
Work on your communications skills so you deliver feedback in the most effective way possible. Learn about different ways that people process information, and match your communication to their preferred style. Learn about Social Styles and other ways that help you communicate with people in the ways they most like to be communicated with.
Fairness (Consequences = Performance)
People want to know that they (and others) are being fairly rewarded based on their performance. This is one of those words that requires definition. Otherwise, it becomes one of those words that everyone agrees with, but no two people have a common definition for.
For us, fairness means that the consequences of the performance are determined by the quantity and quality of the performance. One of the people in my class put it in almost Biblical terms: "The good shall be rewarded and the underachievers shall be punished in accordance with their results."
This ties back to reasonable expectations. It depends on regular and usable feedback.
Consistency (Predictability)
Consistency means pr
Debt consolidation is the process taking all the debt that a person has accumulated and consolidating it into one single payment. Interest rates are usually lower, as is the monthly payment. Several nonprofit organizations have come forward providing resources to consolidate debt for those who are overburdened and in need of financial help. They can unify various debts like home mortgage loans, credit card debts, student loan debts, automobile loans, etc. into a single entity and pay it to the creditor on a monthly basis.A common misconception regarding nonprofit debt consolidation companies is that the state or federal government institutes them in order to assist debtors to pay off their debts easily. However, any debt consolidation company can acquire a nonprofit status by declaring as much in their property tax returns. In fact, most nonprofit debt consolidation companies actually make a lot of profit and then pay a huge amount of this profit as salaries to their staff. Co
In a great working environment the mission is being accomplished and morale is high. It's the "user" side of the two key leadership objectives: accomplish the mission and care for your people.
Most people know exactly what I mean by a great working environment. They may not be able to list characteristics, or point to research, but they've usually experienced one. So have you.
Think about a time in your life when it was great to come to work. If you're lucky there are lots of them. If you're really lucky, now is one of those times.
What was it like then? I'll bet you were excited about the work you were doing, and you knew that it was appreciated. You almost certainly felt that you were being treated fairly and that you had some control over what you got to do.
There's been quite a bit of formal research into the factors that make up a great working environment. Here's a quick summary of what the research tells us make for a great working environment.
* Interesting and Meaningful Work
* Clear and Reasonable Expectations
* Frequent and Usable Feedback
* Fairness (Consequences = Performance)
* Consistency (Predictability)
* Maximum Control Possible Over Work Life
In my training classes, I often do an exercise where participants identify the times when they were in a great working environment and what that was like. The language is often a bit different from the formal research, but the same things come up over and over again.
Interesting and Meaningful Work
People want to do work that's interesting and meaningful. They want what they do to be enriching for them and important to others.
Different people define interesting in different ways. For some people, it means that they're learning a lot, having lots of personal growth. For others, the most important thing is that there are lots of different situations to deal with or lots of different problems to solve.
Sometimes "interesting" is not so much about the work itself as it is about the people you work with. This self fulfillment comes from being part of a team, an elite group, or just a bunch of folks you like working with.
It's also important for the work to have value to others. The "others" can be the whole world, or just your customers or the people you work with.
Clear and Reasonable Expectations
People like to know what's expected of them. They like to know the rules of the game.
Expectations need to be clear. At the supervisory level, that may mean laying out detailed, step by step procedures. At the management level expectations may come out of discussions with several people. At the leadership level, slogans and other brief statements that people can use as a "test" of their plans or actions are usually the most effective.
Don't underestimate the values of frequency, simplicity, and memorability when you're communicating expectations. You have to communicate the important things over and over in memorable terms.
In fact, repeating things is one way of telling people what's important. Slogans are great for this. So are devices like pocket reminder cards with simple messages or messages in table form.
Use your regular forms of communication, like newsletters, emails, sales bulletins to reinforce your leadership message. Reinforce your written communications of expectations with oral communications. Reinforce your formal communications with informal ones.
Remember that you need to state expectations for the performance you want, but you also need to be clear about the consequences of performance that's beyond or not quite up to standard.
Frequent and Usable Feedback
People like to know how they're doing. Feedback is how they find out. To work, the feedback must be frequent (lots of small course corrections) and usable.
How frequent is frequent? The answer, which sounds something like a cop out is: "As often as necessary?"
Some people want and need a lot of feedback. Other people prefer to be left alone most of the time to do their work. You have to know who needs what and in what situations.
The idea is to make lots of small course corrections on the way to the clear target you've established with your expectations. Lots of small adjustments are almost always easier and more effective then a few giant ones.
Feedback also has to be usable. Time your feedback so it reaches people when it is the most helpful. In most situations, that means you want feedback as close to the performance as possible. If you can set up a system so people can get their own feedback, so much the better.
Work on your communications skills so you deliver feedback in the most effective way possible. Learn about different ways that people process information, and match your communication to their preferred style. Learn about Social Styles and other ways that help you communicate with people in the ways they most like to be communicated with.
Fairness (Consequences = Performance)
People want to know that they (and others) are being fairly rewarded based on their performance. This is one of those words that requires definition. Otherwise, it becomes one of those words that everyone agrees with, but no two people have a common definition for.
For us, fairness means that the consequences of the performance are determined by the quantity and quality of the performance. One of the people in my class put it in almost Biblical terms: "The good shall be rewarded and the underachievers shall be punished in accordance with their results."
This ties back to reasonable expectations. It depends on regular and usable feedback.
Consistency (Predictability)
Consistency means pre
Every session of teaching is compared to an instance of public speaking. As with the audience at public speaking event, the students in a classroom session want to follow the content with ease and comfort, learn something new and carry home the happiness of having acquired a new insight. They characteristically abhor the teacher and his session if the required care is not taken to facilitate them to follow and imbibe the contents, no matter how spectacular the contents of the lesson are. Students want to learn without being smothered with confusion or unrelated content. They, by nature, expect the flow of content to be within their stride. They want the flow to be smooth, humorous and juicy. They are willing to learn new things on the basis of their existing conceptual knowledge. They, moreover, want to be involved in the class and seek an opportunity to employ their mental faculties. In the following discussion, several strategies to make the students really enjoy their class time a
* Consistency (Predictability)
* Maximum Control Possible Over Work Life
In my training classes, I often do an exercise where participants identify the times when they were in a great working environment and what that was like. The language is often a bit different from the formal research, but the same things come up over and over again.
Interesting and Meaningful Work
People want to do work that's interesting and meaningful. They want what they do to be enriching for them and important to others.
Different people define interesting in different ways. For some people, it means that they're learning a lot, having lots of personal growth. For others, the most important thing is that there are lots of different situations to deal with or lots of different problems to solve.
Sometimes "interesting" is not so much about the work itself as it is about the people you work with. This self fulfillment comes from being part of a team, an elite group, or just a bunch of folks you like working with.
It's also important for the work to have value to others. The "others" can be the whole world, or just your customers or the people you work with.
Clear and Reasonable Expectations
People like to know what's expected of them. They like to know the rules of the game.
Expectations need to be clear. At the supervisory level, that may mean laying out detailed, step by step procedures. At the management level expectations may come out of discussions with several people. At the leadership level, slogans and other brief statements that people can use as a "test" of their plans or actions are usually the most effective.
Don't underestimate the values of frequency, simplicity, and memorability when you're communicating expectations. You have to communicate the important things over and over in memorable terms.
In fact, repeating things is one way of telling people what's important. Slogans are great for this. So are devices like pocket reminder cards with simple messages or messages in table form.
Use your regular forms of communication, like newsletters, emails, sales bulletins to reinforce your leadership message. Reinforce your written communications of expectations with oral communications. Reinforce your formal communications with informal ones.
Remember that you need to state expectations for the performance you want, but you also need to be clear about the consequences of performance that's beyond or not quite up to standard.
Frequent and Usable Feedback
People like to know how they're doing. Feedback is how they find out. To work, the feedback must be frequent (lots of small course corrections) and usable.
How frequent is frequent? The answer, which sounds something like a cop out is: "As often as necessary?"
Some people want and need a lot of feedback. Other people prefer to be left alone most of the time to do their work. You have to know who needs what and in what situations.
The idea is to make lots of small course corrections on the way to the clear target you've established with your expectations. Lots of small adjustments are almost always easier and more effective then a few giant ones.
Feedback also has to be usable. Time your feedback so it reaches people when it is the most helpful. In most situations, that means you want feedback as close to the performance as possible. If you can set up a system so people can get their own feedback, so much the better.
Work on your communications skills so you deliver feedback in the most effective way possible. Learn about different ways that people process information, and match your communication to their preferred style. Learn about Social Styles and other ways that help you communicate with people in the ways they most like to be communicated with.
Fairness (Consequences = Performance)
People want to know that they (and others) are being fairly rewarded based on their performance. This is one of those words that requires definition. Otherwise, it becomes one of those words that everyone agrees with, but no two people have a common definition for.
For us, fairness means that the consequences of the performance are determined by the quantity and quality of the performance. One of the people in my class put it in almost Biblical terms: "The good shall be rewarded and the underachievers shall be punished in accordance with their results."
This ties back to reasonable expectations. It depends on regular and usable feedback.
Consistency (Predictability)
Consistency means pr
Close your eyes and think about logos that you associate with products. All of us can name several such products in just a few seconds. The most popular logos for me are the golden arch of McDonalds and the Chevy emblem. Both have stood the test of time, allowed the company’s to change with market demands, and stay imprinted in the minds of consumers all over the world. Coming up with a logo for your business can be very difficult. You want it to be original and relative to the type of business you have. You will need to be creative, as well as make sure your logo isn’t too similar to that of another product or service on the market.Where to get a logoIf you have a medium or large sized business, you might be able to have the marketing department come up with several ideas for a logo, with the creator giving a sells pitch for their design. Another good strategy for businesses of all sizes is to have a contest open to all employees. Offering a great priz
Clear and Reasonable Expectations
People like to know what's expected of them. They like to know the rules of the game.
Expectations need to be clear. At the supervisory level, that may mean laying out detailed, step by step procedures. At the management level expectations may come out of discussions with several people. At the leadership level, slogans and other brief statements that people can use as a "test" of their plans or actions are usually the most effective.
Don't underestimate the values of frequency, simplicity, and memorability when you're communicating expectations. You have to communicate the important things over and over in memorable terms.
In fact, repeating things is one way of telling people what's important. Slogans are great for this. So are devices like pocket reminder cards with simple messages or messages in table form.
Use your regular forms of communication, like newsletters, emails, sales bulletins to reinforce your leadership message. Reinforce your written communications of expectations with oral communications. Reinforce your formal communications with informal ones.
Remember that you need to state expectations for the performance you want, but you also need to be clear about the consequences of performance that's beyond or not quite up to standard.
Frequent and Usable Feedback
People like to know how they're doing. Feedback is how they find out. To work, the feedback must be frequent (lots of small course corrections) and usable.
How frequent is frequent? The answer, which sounds something like a cop out is: "As often as necessary?"
Some people want and need a lot of feedback. Other people prefer to be left alone most of the time to do their work. You have to know who needs what and in what situations.
The idea is to make lots of small course corrections on the way to the clear target you've established with your expectations. Lots of small adjustments are almost always easier and more effective then a few giant ones.
Feedback also has to be usable. Time your feedback so it reaches people when it is the most helpful. In most situations, that means you want feedback as close to the performance as possible. If you can set up a system so people can get their own feedback, so much the better.
Work on your communications skills so you deliver feedback in the most effective way possible. Learn about different ways that people process information, and match your communication to their preferred style. Learn about Social Styles and other ways that help you communicate with people in the ways they most like to be communicated with.
Fairness (Consequences = Performance)
People want to know that they (and others) are being fairly rewarded based on their performance. This is one of those words that requires definition. Otherwise, it becomes one of those words that everyone agrees with, but no two people have a common definition for.
For us, fairness means that the consequences of the performance are determined by the quantity and quality of the performance. One of the people in my class put it in almost Biblical terms: "The good shall be rewarded and the underachievers shall be punished in accordance with their results."
This ties back to reasonable expectations. It depends on regular and usable feedback.
Consistency (Predictability)
Consistency means pr
Are you unemployed or been laid off? You are not alone if that is any comfort to you. Worldwide millions of people are in the same predicament as you are. Unemployment and lay offs are stark realities of the downsizing, reengineering, restructuring, and automation in a sluggish global economy where corporations are trying every trick in the book to reduce costs, increase productivity and keep the organization lean, mean and profitable. Every one of us has gone through the phase of being unemployed once or more in our careers.What does one have to undergo during this period. Endless wait for phone calls, eagerly scanning the emails or letters inviting you for a discussion, even a rejection letter seem to be good as you feel at least your existence is being acknowledged, the pain of unreturned calls from ex colleagues and friends whom once you helped or were close to, sudden disappearance of invitations which used to pour in when you were employed may all sound only too fam
Remember that you need to state expectations for the performance you want, but you also need to be clear about the consequences of performance that's beyond or not quite up to standard.
Frequent and Usable Feedback
People like to know how they're doing. Feedback is how they find out. To work, the feedback must be frequent (lots of small course corrections) and usable.
How frequent is frequent? The answer, which sounds something like a cop out is: "As often as necessary?"
Some people want and need a lot of feedback. Other people prefer to be left alone most of the time to do their work. You have to know who needs what and in what situations.
The idea is to make lots of small course corrections on the way to the clear target you've established with your expectations. Lots of small adjustments are almost always easier and more effective then a few giant ones.
Feedback also has to be usable. Time your feedback so it reaches people when it is the most helpful. In most situations, that means you want feedback as close to the performance as possible. If you can set up a system so people can get their own feedback, so much the better.
Work on your communications skills so you deliver feedback in the most effective way possible. Learn about different ways that people process information, and match your communication to their preferred style. Learn about Social Styles and other ways that help you communicate with people in the ways they most like to be communicated with.
Fairness (Consequences = Performance)
People want to know that they (and others) are being fairly rewarded based on their performance. This is one of those words that requires definition. Otherwise, it becomes one of those words that everyone agrees with, but no two people have a common definition for.
For us, fairness means that the consequences of the performance are determined by the quantity and quality of the performance. One of the people in my class put it in almost Biblical terms: "The good shall be rewarded and the underachievers shall be punished in accordance with their results."
This ties back to reasonable expectations. It depends on regular and usable feedback.
Consistency (Predictability)
Consistency means pr
For most law students, networking with law firms is the best way to find a great internship. In large cities and small towns, the legal community is close knit and many times, it is who you know, not what you know. The more people you meet with, the better your chances of building your professional network, and finding a great intern position. Networking is best started with one’s own friends and acquaintances. You can gradually branch out to network with your friends’ friends, colleagues, and members of the legal profession, as well as others in the business community that can further your efforts.Do not be shy about contracting people of the legal profession who are not known to you. Concentrate on lawyers who are active in your field of interest. Make a list of potential law firms and seek appointments to set up interviews. You can make it clear that you are not looking for a job or internship, but seeking their advice and suggestions on your common field of interest. In th
Work on your communications skills so you deliver feedback in the most effective way possible. Learn about different ways that people process information, and match your communication to their preferred style. Learn about Social Styles and other ways that help you communicate with people in the ways they most like to be communicated with.
Fairness (Consequences = Performance)
People want to know that they (and others) are being fairly rewarded based on their performance. This is one of those words that requires definition. Otherwise, it becomes one of those words that everyone agrees with, but no two people have a common definition for.
For us, fairness means that the consequences of the performance are determined by the quantity and quality of the performance. One of the people in my class put it in almost Biblical terms: "The good shall be rewarded and the underachievers shall be punished in accordance with their results."
This ties back to reasonable expectations. It depends on regular and usable feedback.
Consistency (Predictability)
Consistency means predictability. Subordinates want to know how their supervisor will react in a given situation. Consistency also relates to predictability in terms of performance.
Your people want to know how to predict your reaction in different situations. If they can't, they worry about whether or not to trust you.
According to some management studies, consistency (predictability) is the single most effective standard to establish with your own leadership behavior. It's actually another form of communication. It's a way of walking the talk.
Leadership by example means that you act out the values and principles that you say you and others stand for. To quote Howell Raines on Bear Bryant: "Coach Bryant had an idea about how a man ought to act and if you watched him, you could figure out what it was."
Leadership by example means that you consistently pay attention to the important things, consistently reward good performance, consistently see that rewards and punishments are meted out fairly.
Maximum Control Possible over Work Life
People want to have a say about things that affect their life. You can make that happen for them by giving them as much control as possible over issues that affect them at work.
Obviously that varies from person to person and situation to situation. Some people like to be left alone. Others want to see you frequently.
Some people are qualified to make lots of decisions about their work. Others need to develop their skills a bit before they can do the same.
Some people work hard and make an effort to do the job. Others slack off.
It's probably a good general rule to allow individuals as much control of the basic decisions about their work as they are capable of handling and willing to handle. In today's flatter organizations, this is easier to do from an organizational standpoint, but it's hard for many of us from a personal standpoint.
Part of your job as a boss is to create a great working environment for the people who work for you. It's not easy, but the result can be both high morale and high productivity.
HTTP = HTML link (for blogs, profiles,phorums):
<a href="http://www.atriclecheck.com/article/22258/atriclecheck-What-Makes-a-Great-Working-Environment.html">What Makes a Great Working Environment?</a>
BB link (for phorums):
[url=http://www.atriclecheck.com/article/22258/atriclecheck-What-Makes-a-Great-Working-Environment.html]What Makes a Great Working Environment?[/url]
Related Articles:
The Hidden Secret on Logo Colors, and How They Affect Your Customers
Is Business Behaving Badly or is the Blob of Bureaucracy to Blame?
Bookmark it:
|