Posts Tagged ‘employee engagement’
Rypple’s Nick Stein, on How to Deliver Better Feedback February 2 2012 7 responses
Rypple is a web-based social performance management platform that helps companies improve performance through social goals, continuous feedback and meaningful recognition. I recently spoke with Rypple’s Nick Stein to learn more about the company and get his tips for giving – and getting – effective feedback. Here’s an edited version of our conversation.
Scott: Is it fair to say a quick description of Rypple would be Facebook for feedback?
Nick: I think that feedback is certainly a very important part of it. But I’d say that the feedback should be focused around aligning people within the organization so that they feel empowered and that people who lead your organization feel confident that everybody is moving in the same direction. So it’s feedback, but it’s feedback that leads directly to business results.
When it comes to feedback, how much is enough?
When most of us think traditionally of feedback within an organization, we think of the performance review, which a lot of companies still use and they do them once a year. And they’re backward-looking and have really morphed into this thing that’s much more about compliance than it is about performance.
When we look at feedback, we hear from our customers and tons of research that’s been done out there that employees are craving feedback, and as much of it as they can get. And I think that’s particularly true for the Millennials, who really have grown up around the idea of getting constant feedback that they can then use to get better at what they do.
What are your top tips for making the feedback useful? For somebody who wants to be really effective in providing feedback, what are two or three things they should always keep in mind?
What Do People Want From Work? January 9 2012 11 responses
Other than the basic requirements – food, shelter, health care – on the hierarchy of needs, what do people really want from their jobs?
Last week I attended a presentation from Peter Cappelli, a Wharton professor and thought leader on talent management, where he addressed that question. Based on a study he cited, these are the top five things that a large group of people say they want from their work:
1. Friendly environment
2. Chance to use my skills
3. Chance to do something worthwhile
4. Feeling respected by coworkers
5. The opportunity to learn something new
Is there anything on the list that’s really that surprising? If you stop and think about it, you probably want those things from your own work.
Here’s the catch on the data that Cappelli shared. He presented it in the content of a talk on managing the older generation of workers and the data comes from a study that AARP conducted on what older workers want.
Is the list really that different that what workers of any age would want? My experience and observations tell me no. People want to work in an environment where they feel respected and appreciated, where they can learn and do their best work.
What does your experience tell you? What’s on your short list of the most important things that leaders can do to create a place where people want to work?
How to Be a Really Useful Coach in 5 Minutes or Less October 20 2011 2 responses
One of the jokes I sometimes make when I’m leading a workshop or giving a presentation is that being a coach is one of the greatest gigs in the world because you don’t have to know anything. All you have to do is ask questions and let the other person talk. Like most jokes there’s some truth behind the joke. Here’s why.
If you have four basic questions ready to go, you can coach anyone in five minutes or less to think through and be better prepared for the most important thing they’re going to do this week. It requires no formal experience or training as a coach. All you have to do is ask the questions, listen and ask the other person to elaborate.
Here are the questions. (Potential follow up questions are in parentheses):
1. What’s the most important meeting or event coming up on your calendar in the next week?
2. If that meeting or event is a complete success, what happens at the end? (What do people know, think, do, feel or believe?)
3. How do you need to show up to make that outcome likely? (What are you going to say and how are you going to say it? What kind of energy, body language, tone of voice and demeanor do you need to demonstrate?)
4. (What else?) This is the all purpose coaching question because it draws out the extra ideas.
That’s it. You can have a very productive coaching conversation in five minutes or less if you use those questions. I know they work because hundreds of people I’ve had coach each other in workshops tell me they work. The cool thing is that you can easily teach others how to coach you by sharing the questions with them. If you don’t have anyone available, you can coach yourself using the questions.
I often say that one of the most important things I do for my coaching clients is giving them the space to listen to themselves think. With a simple coaching approach like this one, you can get a lot of thinking and preparation packed into a short amount of time.
Give it a five minute or less try with a colleague today and let me know through a comment or tweet how it works for you.
How to Quit Kicking the Can Down the Road September 26 2011 no responses
CNN’s Fareed Zakaria is one of the smartest people I don’t know. His GPS (Global Public Square) show on Sunday afternoon is an oasis of civil and intelligent discussion on world events in a desert of babble and blather.
He opened this week’s show with a commentary on the burgeoning economic crisis in the Eurozone. You can read the full transcript of his remarks on his blog, but here’s the conclusion that really caught my attention and stimulated my thinking:
“Everywhere leaders all seem to assume that if they just keep things steady, something will miraculously happen to solve the problems and jumpstart growth. It won’t. The problems are actually getting worse and by sticking their heads in the sand, leaders are only deepening the inevitable crisis.”
Of course, that dynamic is not limited to the Eurozone. I’ve noticed that the phrase of the moment is “kicking the can down the road.” When you want to ignore a problem, defer it to someone else’s watch or wait for it to magically get better, you kick the can down the road.
It’s a strategy that almost never works. Take a common, everyday example. How many times have you seen a manager with a non-performing or disruptive employee not act to correct the situation in the hope that things would get better on their own? I’ve seen it lots of times and it never gets better.
So, why, as human beings who sometimes happen to be leaders, do we kick the can down the road? More importantly, what can we do to deal with problems instead of avoiding them? Here are some ideas.
The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace September 7 2011 one response
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Earlier this year, I wrote a blog post called Can This Marriage (Customer, Team, Leader) Be Saved? in which I referenced a book called The 5 Love Languages
It’s out now and is called The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace
He was also nice enough to share his top ten easiest ways to show appreciation to almost anyone. You can download that here.
This stuff is easy to do and likely to make a difference, folks. Think about it:
- What kind of difference does it make for you when your boss or a co-worker expresses their appreciation?
- What kind of difference would it make for your team members if you expressed your appreciation in a way that works for them (hint: something beyond the “great job everyone” email)?
- What is your No. 1 idea for anyone who wants to do a better job of showing appreciation to others at work?
Scott Eblin is an executive coach, speaker and author of 
Recent Comments