There is quite alot of discussion about the importance or otherwise of employee engagement to productivity and performance of individuals at work. There is correlational data which suggests organisations with high levels of engagement (however that is defined and measured) have higher levels of productivity, discretionary effort or job satisfaction. There is much less data … Continued
Despite us spending on average 25% less time at work compared with 50 years ago, two thirds of us feel overwhelmed. Something’s obviously going wrong and why is it we feel so very stressed as a result? Is it because we are catastrophising daily events into highly stressful situations (very possibly). Or is it because … Continued
Feedback can demotivate an individual and lead to a drop in performance. And yet feedback is a critical component of any manager’s job. Is there a better way to deliver feedback which leaves employees feeling motivated and positive about their performance potential? It doesn’t matter if it’s negative or positive feedback in more than one … Continued
Ed Deci, together with his collaborator and friend, Richard Ryan, have been researching and writing about what motivates people for more than 25 years. In their opinion, leaders and managers should not be worrying about how to motivate their employees. Instead, they should be thinking “How can I create the conditions within which other people … Continued
The aim of any performance management system is to continuously improve the performance of individuals and that of the organisation (ACAS). It involves making sure that the performance of individuals contributes to the goals of their teams and the business as a whole. Good performance management helps everyone in the organisation to know: what the … Continued
In March, Zappos offered its employees an ultimatum: get behind their new organisation structure or leave in exchange for at least 3 months of redundancy (The Washington Post). As a result of the ‘ultimatum’, approximately 14% of the the 1,500 workforce took redundancy. Some may consider this relatively high, particularly as Zappos’ customer focused workforce … Continued
After realising it wasted 2 million hours annually on undertaking pointless information gathering in support of performance management ratings, Deloittes have radically overhauled its performance managment system and with one stroke have breathed life into one of the most painful HR processes created. It asks line managers to rate each member of staff against 4 … Continued
Sir Dave Brailsford, MBA, CBE, Team Principal, Team Sky and former Performance Director, Great Britain Cycling Team, gives top 5 tips for outperformance. His success is based on a theory of ‘marginal gains’ – significant improvement is obtained through a large number of marginal increases. 1. Recruit the best people that you can possibly find … Continued
Many organisations struggle to increase their employee engagement levels. Chances are many initiatives undertaken by these organisations are organisation wide and process driven. A different ‘give back’ initiative, a new cutomer service incentive scheme or even better food/desks/chairs/gym membership. Whilst we should not ignore the importance of such initiatives, I worry they lack the personal … Continued
An interesting blog at IDEO highlighting an experiment in client empathy ended up emphasising how the little things in life really matter. IDEO is a creative design company which is justifiably proud of their fantastic work culture. In their words ‘We provide the small things that enable the day to run smoothly so individuals can … Continued
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