Zellers Is s u e 07

F e b r ua r y 20 1 0

Consulting
Group
Management
focus
Management is the Art of letting
other people have Your way Now Available

What Employees Want #1: Interesting and Challenging Work

Regardless of whether you are thinking about adding new
240
employees or focusing on getting more productivity from the Point
ones you have; let’s talk about a couple of things important to
your team. Operational
A recent study conducted by the Conference Board Consumer and
Research Center indicated that only 43.5% of Americans are
“satisfied” with their work. That number compares with 61% in
the same survey taken in 1987. A review of the previous surveys
Finance
shows a steady drop in job satisfaction - even when the economy
was booming and despite increases in compensation. Those
Assessment
interviewed for the current survey indicated that their work was
A comprehensive
less interesting, less engaging and less meaningful than it used to
be and only 51% of respondents said their work was “interesting”. assessment of your
business including
Is it any surprise that 22% of employees expect to change
Strategy, Marketing,
jobs next year? If your best employees view their work as
boring and meaningless, they could be talking with their feet Sales, Operations,
when the economy improves! Instead of hiring to increase your staff, you could be spending Finance and
time and money to replace existing staff. It is never the wrong time to think about employee Human Resources
retention. What are you doing to motivate and inspire the people who work for you?
Only from ZCG

What Employees Want #2: Listen to Us! From the

In his book, 30 Reasons Employees Hate Their Managers: What
desk of
Your People May Be Thinking and What You Can Do About It, Ted Zellers
Bruce Katcher notes that Sixty-six percent of employees
say management doesn’t listen to them, and 67 percent say “To truly become a high
management fails to act on employee suggestions. This is a huge performing company with
issue for both management and staff as employee motivation greater profitability, you
and commitment deteriorates when employees feel manage- must plan for it, evaluate
ment doesn’t care about what they have to say. In addition, f i n an c i a l p e r f o r m a n ce
managers who don’t listen to employees miss out on critical and take action to ad-
information about their products, their customers, opportuni- dress problems as they
ties to reduce costs, and so on.
arise.

To do this, you must

So, Engage your Employees... have accurate and timely
financial i n f o r m a t i o n,
Right now, you need your best employees more than ever. You need their cooperation, you which you understand
need their best ideas and you need to be sure they don't leave. and use to measure the
p e rf ormance of y our
But the opportunity is larger than that. This is your chance to engage them like never before, to
business.”
share both the pain and the rewards, to renew respect within every level of the organization,
and to learn from each other about the challenges and possibilities. If you seize this
opportunity enthusiastically, not only will it help you survive, it will help you thrive. Page 1 of 3
 Is s u e 07

Zellers F e b r ua r y 20 1 0

Consulting
Group
Management
So, Engage your Employees… cont’d
focus
Your company will emerge with a stronger, more committed, and better-aligned workforce than Build More
you have ever experienced.
It should be no secret that employee loyalty and confidence are in the weeds. After years of
PROFIT
corporate downsizing and the resulting increases in workload, many employees are just waiting in you Business!
for improvement in the economy to shop their own skills. However, even when budgets have
been slashed, and incentives scaled back, there are steps you can take to ensure that your The Zellers Consulting
employees remain committed to you and your company. Group provides consult-
ing and manage me nt
Joe Takash, a behavior strategist and author of the newly released “Results Through Relation-
services to a growing list
ships: Building Trust, Performance, and Profit Through People,” offers some tips for high-
potential workforce retention: of small business clients.
We offer our clients cus-
1. Determine the motivations of top talent by asking specific questions such as: tomized solutions linking
• Are you happy with where your career is headed? business information with
• What would you like the next step in you career to be?
technology, strategy and
• How can I/we help you get there?
execution.
2. Make individual meetings a standard at your company. Takash notes how companies
often "do back flips for their clients yet don't look inward and pay special attention to those who Simply put, we make
drive the business”. He notes that meeting with your employees individually recognizes their our clients:
importance and provides a forum for discovering what they may not disclose in a group
meeting.  More Efficient
 More Competitive
3. Delegate and give responsibility. "Your emerging leaders want to be challenged and
 More Profitable
given assignments that utilize their talent. This is how they learn.” Along with granting
responsibility, you must ensure they have the Authority needed to see a project through.
Authority and Responsibility are like two sides of the same coin. ...and we
Guarantee our
4. Become a teaching executive. Takash points out that "Even the brightest executives have
work!
never been taught the fundamental rule of adult learning: Teaching hasn't occurred until
learning is confirmed”. He goes on to note that Telling isn't Teaching, and executives must
understand that even the brightest talent may process information differently than they do. Be
certain that in your teaching, your efforts include that critical step: confirm their understanding.

5. Share knowledge. "In the absence of feedback, people create their own, and it's typically
negative," says Takash. No one likes being treated like a mushroom (you know, kept in the dark
and shoveled sh**). Keep your team aware of what's going on – and do it regularly. Share
your knowledge and not simply data. Data is merely 'the what.” Your knowledge is 'the what,
the why, and the how’ they play a vital role and make a positive impact.

What is your Leadership Style?

Leaders influence people and get them to recognize and achieve
their maximum potential. How we influence others is a subject
about which much has been written. I happen to believe that
two key elements of the leadership puzzle are Trust and Re-
spect. Without earning these, you are left with Fear and
Money as your primary motivators. In our mobile society, tal-
ented people will not endure a workplace driven by fear for
long. At the same time, loyalty purchased with money is fleet-
ing.
Unfortunately, there is no purple pill to enhance your leader-
ship skills. It’s not just about being the BOSS! Interestingly,
common sense is still a major leadership performance indicator.
Page 2 of 3
 Is s u e 07

Zellers F e b r ua r y 20 1 0

Consulting
Group
Management
What is your Leadership Style? - cont’d
focus
So are listening, fairness, consistency and the ability to forge consensus. Recognizing that Our Expertise
work has become less interesting (and therefore less personally motivating), managers must
become more active in creating opportunities for employee development and refine their “soft
skills” to help build employee retention. Strategic Planning

To be effective, leaders must be able to recognize and understand themselves – both strengths Productivity
and weaknesses. Core values – Integrity, Candor, Fairness, Courtesy – never change; but Improvement
other facets of your leadership style can adapt along with changes in current conditions – and
Management by
conditions are always changing! The circumstances change, the people around you change and
you change as an individual. Objective

The part of leadership that involves your position in the hierarchy of the organization – where Sales Team
authority is assumed based on your title - is known as Formal Authority. Utilizing formal Management
Business
Understanding the Two Types of Authority Development
authority alone is the old autocratic, lone wolf style of leadership that just isn’t acceptable to Gross Margin
today’s employees. While formal authority can help you get things done, when it is the only Improvement
means of management, you may get short-term results but suffer long-term consequences -
like low morale and high staff turnover. Process
Re-Engineering
Informal Authority, the authority that is earned out of respect, is the authority granted to you
by your employees. You earn this authority by winning over the hearts and minds of your Leadership Coaching
employees. It is based on your willingness to trust and respect your employees and recognize
that they are your most valuable assets. With authority comes responsibility; the responsibility Company Branding
of honesty, trustworthiness and integrity. Careful exercise of this authority will earn your em- Product Marketing
ployee’s trust and you will gain their respect as their leader.
Management
Training &
Progress in the Economy Development
The economy is picking up steam. The fourth quarter of 2009 saw increases in business invest- Lead Generation
ment for new equipment and software running at a 13% annualized rate - the strongest rise in
four years. Most economists say that increases in equipment purchases are a harbinger of new Program Creation
hiring to come.
Inventory
Management &
Are You Thinking About Adding Staff? Re-Alignment
The recession forced many companies to lay-off quantities of very talented people. Performance-Based
If you are ready to hire, you may be in position to benefit from their mistakes, Compensation Plans
both immediately and in the future. There may be opportunities to “trade up”–
taking advantage of the skilled and eager workforce that has become available.
This could be a great time to pick up some exceptional and eager talent.

If you were careful and selective with your own layoffs during the recession, eliminating only
your least productive and “problem” employees as you reduced headcount, your core staff and
productive capacity should be largely intact. The potential addition of
skilled new workers could provide a strong competitive advantage as
the recovery progresses.

www.zellersconsultinggroup.com
Questions or comments? Email us at: tzellers@zellersconsultinggroup.com or call 248-410-6882
© 2009 Zellers Consulting Group. All rights reserved.

Page 3 of 3