The Performance Gap

There is an ever widening gap in the work place between job proficiency and job productivity.

During the time of America’s industrial revolution in the early 20^th century there was a clear standard the existed with regard to the wages to be earned and the work to be performed.

There was a profound performance protocol that linked job proficiency with job productivity that made them virtually inseparable. The accepted standard for compensation in America’s burgeoning industrial organizations was known as “piecework”. 

Wage incentives in the form of piecework were intended to successfully boost worker efficiency, effectiveness and output. In turn, industrial workers were self motivated to increase their personal competency, skill proficiency and productivity. The end result was a win-win scenario for both the organization and the worker.

The piecework concept was straight forward and simple. Moreover, it provided a clear and resounding answer to the worker’s #1 concern when it came to their job -- The proverbial W.I.I.F.M question… “What’s In It For Me?”

As we fast forward to present time, the 21^st century post industrial period offers little in the way of wage incentives. Even in the once lucrative sales business, most sales people find that their supposed sales bonuses and awards are always just beyond their performance reach. Their incentives are more theoretical than reality, because the organization itself is the one that is creating the set points for the bonuses and awards which are based on the organization’s revenue requirements as opposed to the respective capabilities of their sales force.

In our current age of information technology the relationship between “proficiency” and “productivity has become virtually nonexistent. 100 years ago piecework ruled the roost and salaried positions were few and far between. Today, the vast majority of job positions are either fixed salary or a flat hourly wage with little or no option for overtime -- As a high percentage of employers have adopted a stringent no overtime policy as a result of the Great Recession.

With rare exception, other than a few remaining trades, the piecework model has become an antiquated dinosaur. True productivity has become severely impaired as a direct result of the lack of achievable wage incentives and worker motivation.

As adolescents, your workers received scholastic based proficiency testing to determine what they had learned (what they know). In contrast, as adults the real world focus shifted to what can they “do”?

The reality is that adult workers in mass are not fully utilizing the skills that they have already acquired. This is attributable to a variety of contributing causes that include a lack of personal motivation, work ethic, incentives and the inadequacy of their leadership to engage them.

Authentic leadership bears the responsibility of bringing out the best in people by helping the organization and its people to use their talents, abilities, skills, education and professional training more often, more effectively and more successfully. This will ultimately enhance worker proficiency while increasing organizational productivity.

The Leadership Academy… Changing the way organizations and people work, perform and live.

Copyright © 2013 Developing Forward | Thomas H. Swank, CBC | All Rights Reserved.

Knowledge Is Not Power

For the record, I’m quite serious about the above ascertain. Like myself, you most likely hear people saying that “Knowledge is power” on a regular basis. But, have you ever stopped to really question this statement? If knowledge really is power, how is it that so many well educated people are performing in such a mediocre fashion?

How is it that technology companies that employ scads of IT Consultants have internal technology issues and then wind up engaging the services of an outside IT Consulting firm to come in and assess their problem? The last thing that their company or any company truly needs is another “expert”.

This exact same scenario occurs with engineering firms who like wise turn to an outside engineering consultant to fix their engineering problem. In fact this is an accepted practice in virtually every field of business and industry.

If mere knowledge was power… Then these companies wouldn’t need to consult with external sources of expertise in their own field. Simply take a moment to consider that these employers recruited and hired their IT people and engineers based on their education, training and experience in the first place. There is an abundance of talent already on board with these employers. If there is one thing that these organizations are not lacking… it’s people with plenty of “smarts”.

In her book “Mastering the Rockefeller Habits”, author Verne Harnish recalls a story about Charles Schwab the CEO of Bethlehem Steel Company in the early 1900’s. CEO Schwab was conversing with a management consultant who inferred that Schwab’s people gain more knowledge around managing.

Charles Schwab responded with the now famous statement “What we need around here is not more knowing, but more doing! If you will help us to do the things we already know we ought to do, I’ll gladly pay you anything you ask!”

Like any bright consultant would do, he took CEO Schwab up on his challenge and then asserted “In 20 minutes, I’ll show you how to get your organization to do at least 50% more.” The advice which then provided to Charles Schwab was to:

● Write down and prioritize your 5 most important tasks to complete in the next business day.

● Put the list in your pocket until tomorrow when you will take it out and start working on number one.

● Look at that item every 15 minutes until it’s done.

● Then move on to the next and then the next.

● Don’t be concerned if you only finish two or three or even one because you will be working on the most important things. 

Charles Schwab who was compensated in the amount of a million dollars a year by Andrew Carnegie for his leadership abilities and expertise stated that “this was the most profitable lesson he had ever learned.” What exactly was this valuable lesson you ask? It was this:

The organization whether small or large that understands and executes on the power of focusing on priorities will progress and succeed.

CEO Schwab paid the consultant $25,000 for this sterling advice, which in the early 1900’s was a huge sum of money. Especially when you consider that it was for just a few short minutes.

I completely concur with Charles Schwab that knowing is void of value unless there is real doing… For knowledge only has power when it is applied and subsequently implemented.

Copyright © 2013 Developing Forward | Thomas H. Swank, CBC | All Rights Reserved.

Build A Better Business

Throughout the annals of history there have been countless times when the hallowed halls of Ivy League institutions of higher learning and the walleyed investors of Wall Street simply didn’t get it right.

Given the continuing economic uncertainty… This may be such a time.

As a business executive, entrepreneur or public servant you need to shift your focus from what isn’t working and make every attempt to refocus your attention on who and what is in fact working in these tumultuous times.

For there is a very specific group of business organizations that comprise virtually every segment of business and industry that are doing extraordinarily well… even in the New Economy. These unique organizations encompass supermarkets, engineering, construction, photography, staffing, holding companies, industrial components, manufacturing, architecture, electrical equipment, environmental services, dairy, retail, sporting goods, motel management, technology and more.

The common component that all of these companies regardless of size, stature or business classification share is that they are all “employee owned”.

Some of the household names of employee owned organizations that you are undoubtedly familiar with include Publix Supermarkets, Piggly Wiggly, W.L. Gore, Davey Tree Experts, Kinney Drugs and Graybar Electric.

Unlike traditional business organizations that employ a “top down” approach to their operations, employee owned organizations hold to a “bottom up” business philosophy that accommodates each employee’s status as an owner.

Publix Super Markets is currently the largest employee owned company in the United States with revenues of over $24 billion and more than 140,000 employees. Publix has the esteemed distinction of being one of the “100 Best Companies to Work for in America”. Publix stock which is tightly held by its employee owners, has (since the company first launched) grown twice as fast the S&P 500 index at a rate of more than 19% percent per year.

A ranking of the Top 100 companies by Fortune Magazine in 2009 revealed that 14% of the companies listed were in fact employee owned. Moreover, this trend and its underlying business model are on the grow globally. The John Lewis Partnership is a 81,000 employee owned corporation that owns the largest department store chain in England, the Waitrose Supermarket chain and other brands. Over the course of the past decade, JLP grew faster than Macy’s and in 2011eclipsed 13.7 billion dollars in revenue.

One of the organizational attributes that contributes to the success of employee owned companies is that the organization’s accountability is to the employees themselves and not a group of external investors or shareholders.

In like fashion, employee owned organizations take their mission and “value” proposition earnestly to heart. It’s no longer a meaningless platitude, rather it is a set of basic principles that everyone can believe in, take pride in and govern their individual actions by.

Employee owned organizations typically have excellent communications that flow freely throughout the organization while promoting ideas, creativity and innovation. As well, employee owned organizations generally have a unique perspective with regard to organizational alignment of talent, skills, experience and expertise. This occurs through the process of having those employees with the greatest levels of expertise in a given area of operation making or recommending the decisions for that portion of the organization’s operation.

As for the benefits of an employee owned organization, you need only consider the research performed by Harvard and Rutgers which confirmed that employee ownership fosters high performance, lower employee turnover, increased trust, greater shareholder value and long term sustainability.

Clearly, there is much to be learned from employee owned organizations that can be applied to your organization regardless of size or industry that will help you to build a better business.

Copyright © 2013 Developing Forward | Thomas H. Swank, CBC | All Rights Reserved.

Are You Asking The Right Questions?

One of the hallmark qualities of a great leader is their ability to ask the "right" questions. In your role as an executive leader or business owner, your ability to effectively lead your organization and people formally is rooted in your ability to first provide personal leadership of "self".

While many of your daily self questions are routine, such as “What’s the weather like this morning? “What should I wear today?” or “What do I want for lunch?” At your performance level, the significance of your questions changes dramatically as they will ultimately affect your professional result outcomes… “How can we better serve our customers?” or “What can we do to further engage our employees on a daily basis?”

So, when you take inventory of the 50,000+ thoughts and 30,000 decisions that you make on a daily basis, exactly what kind of questions are you actually asking yourself? More importantly, are you even paying attention to how you are answering yourself? Following are some of the top questions that successful people pose to themselves on a regular basis:

How can I make the world a better place in the time I’m privileged to be here? Consider how you would want others to remember you after you are gone. Even if it’s just one thing, what is the legacy that you want to leave behind to benefit others? What is most important to you? Does the life that you are living reflect those priorities?

Where and how am I wrong? This is one of the most powerful questions that you can ask of yourself or your people. Everyone including you makes mistakes and bad decisions. When people make the shift from defending that they didn’t do anything wrong to forthrightly considering where and how they went wrong -- Everyone will get to the truth much quicker and then begin the process of investing their time and efforts to actually become better and achieve more.

Why am I so tense and serious? Learn to lighten up. Not only will you feel better, it will help the others that are around you. Adults laugh about 15 times a day, however that includes nervous, put-on and sarcastic laughter. Children on the other hand laugh 400+ times a day, because they allow it to be natural. Laughter is infectious… Pass it on… and by the way, it’s a “win-win”.

How much of this stuff do I really need? Devote more time to learning something new every day than acquiring something new every day. How much of your stuff do you really and truly need? How much of it are you actually using on a daily basis? Honestly, you’ve got thoughts, possessions, habits and even people in your life that you would be better off without. Too many meetings, too many nonproductive social media messages, too many TV programs and not enough quality time to think clearly. Decide what has to go and then be courageous enough to follow through with it.

Am I facing my fears? If there is one thing that is going to hold you back it’s fear. This question requires brutal self honesty, as most people want to appear strong and in control. Are you afraid that others might see your vulnerabilities? The greatest fear that people have overall is the fear of public speaking and everyone ultimately fears something. Whether you stuck your foot in your mouth, spilled a glass of wine or embarrassed yourself in some other way… You are not alone. No one is perfect, so get over yourself and in the process understand that you can only go as far as your greatest fear.

What has to change? In all candor, there are probably a number of things that you know that you need to change in your life. The reality however is that you either feel overwhelmed or have attempted to tackle too many things at one time and then threw in the towel. Change is always big, at least in your mind. So treat it like the elephant analogy and eat it one bite at a time. Identify the one thing that absolutely has to change. Now ask yourself the following two questions… What are the consequences that you are already living with as a result of your inaction? What is the “cost” if you don’t change it now?

Learning to ask the “right” questions of yourself and others will re-frame important thought processes while leading to better problem solving and decision making. It is also an important step forward in creating a life, a career and an organization by design.

Copyright © 2013 Developing Forward | Thomas H. Swank, CBC | All Rights Reserved.

The #1 Way To Win At Leadership

Don Shula is the Winningest Coach in the history of the National Football League. Coach Shula had a singular perspective for being a winner and a leader both on and off the field, which was embodied in the following standard... "I don't know any other way to lead... but by example."

Today’s business marketplace and economy are in a constant state of flux. What used to work years ago isn’t working well anymore and it many instances doesn’t work at all. The age old act of “bossing” people around no longer generates acceptable results.

Authentic leaders realize that their leadership team at all levels of the organization must develop the necessary skill sets that are required to truly motivate its people to meaningful action. The practice of ordering employees on what to do has been supplanted by the more effectual process of assisting people in setting appropriate goals for their department or team and helping them to successfully achieve them in the interest of the organization, the team and the individuals.

The organization’s ability to lead its people to share a common point of view about the work and related goals to be accomplished is the most effective demonstration of executive leadership “buy-in” that all levels of the organization are working together for a common purpose, common goal and the common good of all involved.

21^st Century leadership has transcended from a dictatorial profile to one of inspiration and collaboration. The leadership paradigm has shifted from being under the microscope of criticism as the boss to the contemporary observance of leadership that is worthy of following.

In the arena of adult learning, people learn best by observing other people that they have determined to be believable, trustworthy and authentic. Your organization’s employees have the capacity to clearly distinguish right from wrong and are continually in the process of observing the organization’s leadership based on their personal desire to do the right thing.

When your organization generates this breed of leadership, not only will it live out the example that your people long to follow, it will be destined to achieve great things over the long term.

The Leadership Academy... Changing the way organizations and people work, perform and live.

Copyright © 2013 Developing Forward | Thomas H. Swank, CBC | All Rights Reserved.

 

Leadership: For Better Or Worse

While you are undoubtedly familiar with that portion of the traditional wedding vow that pertains to your commitment to your spouse for “better or worse”, does the leadership of your organization uphold the same level of commitment to their leadership roles?

Legendary football coach Lou Holtz who led his teams to many championships is widely known for his practice of constantly reminding his team that “You’re either getting better or getting worse. Nothing stays the same.”

The concept of where your organization or yourself as an individual “stand today” lies entirely in the context of what direction you are moving. Your organization, its leadership and yourself are all progressively day by day either moving forward toward mission and goal achievement (better) or are moving backward and losing ground to both performance and goal achievement (worse).

As I so often remind the leaders whom I’m privileged to work with…”Neither time nor the marketplace will afford you the opportunity to remain where you are.”

Your organization exists in a rapidly changing business and economic environment. The very moment that you pause or become complacent in your daily efforts, you begin the move backward. If your organization is simply maintaining the same level of productivity and results, then you are in essence still moving backward, because your competition is in turn is going to zoom right past you.

Another municipality will gladly garner your tourism dollars and attract visitors to their town. If you are a for-profit business, then one of your competitors will be glad to take away your customer and make the sale.

The ability of your organization and its leadership to continually move forward rests solely on the organization’s commitment for “better or worse”. If you are truly committed to a process for the ongoing develop of your leadership at all levels of your organization, your organization will find itself better prepared to sustain its forward progress.

Martin Luther King said that “The time is always right to do what is right.” The fall training season will soon be here and now is the right time to schedule your organization’s fall edition of The Leadership Academy.

The Leadership Academy… Changing the way organizations and people work, perform and live.

Copyright © 2013 Developing Forward | Thomas H. Swank, CBC |  All Rights Reserved.

What Manner Of Great Do You Want To Be?

The following question was recently posed to me by one of my Leadership Academy Program participants. And what a great question it is!

“What distinguishes a great supervisor from a great leader?”

If you’re going to be a great supervisor or a great leader then you’re not willing to be just “average” or allow those people who may be placed in your charge to be average either. You will possess the desire to perform at your personal best and be committed to helping your organization, its people and yourself in achieving optimal success.

As for what makes a great supervisor and a great leader, the answer could be highly interpretive depending on who is providing the answer. From my perspective in any arena of life and business, I like to employ Earl Nightingale’s “KISS” philosophy… Keep It Simple & Straightforward.

So let’s break it down… what does it really take to be “great” at anything?

Is it superior intellect? (High IQ, formal education, lots of degrees and letters after your name) Especially in this day and age, there are a great number of SME’s (Subject Matter Experts) who have a fountain of intellectual knowledge, yet are unable to apply it to the specific work at hand. This result in termed as a functional implementation problem or failure to implement.

Is it natural ability? There have been plenty of “can’t miss” prospects, phenoms and Heishman Trophy winners that never made it BIG. In music they refer to them as “One Hit Wonders”.

Is it work ethic? Does the classic axiom that “An honest days work is worth an honest days pay” still hold water today?

If you’re going to travel the road that leads to greatness, then these are the three ways to potentially get there. As you can clearly see, there isn’t one right answer. There are many highly successful people that have traveled each of these roads to greatness.

To clarify this, let’s use an analogy that is easy to follow. If I’m managing a professional sports team, then I need to know, weigh and then correctly play the odds that will provide me with the best opportunity to attain the result I want. For me personally, in considering these three types of candidates I would almost always take the person with the strong work ethic. Here’s my reasoning… Charlie Hustle will always out work and out perform the smarter or naturally gifted person because they want it more and are willing to work harder to get where they want to go.

This is exactly why Joe Namath, Cal Ripken, Michael Jordan, Chi-Chi Rodriguez, Lee Trevino and many others are in the Hall of Fame. Everyone said that they were too small, not talented enough or couldn’t play the position. While he’s not in the HOF, one of all time the best examples of Charlie Hustle was Pete Rose.

Then, there is another rare breed of people who are great at what they do in life because they embody more than just one of these aspects. Tiger Woods was the perfect example of this for most of his youth and early professional career. He intellectually knew everything and every nuance about the game of golf and how to intellectually “manage” his mental game around the golf course as well as his will to win. While Tiger had great natural ability, he also learned as John Maxwell wrote that “Talent Is Never Enough”. So, not only did he proceed to learn and master even more skills… He used a masterful work ethic to polish them, sharpen them and engrain them.

So my question for you is this… What manner of “great” do you want to be?

Coming soon, the sequel article “Distinguishing Great Supervisors From Great Leaders”.

Copyright © 2013 Developing Forward | Thomas H. Swank, CBC | All Rights Reserved.