Performance Baloney
September 3, 2010
Recently , a UCLA professor called for the end of performance reviews. In an NPR interview he called them ‘total baloney.’
It’s not that performance reviews should be eliminated, it’s the way they are
done and the implicit agreement they create. I.e. If you improve in these
areas you will receive this reward. Most discussions like these are not honest
and are always awkward. Most employees are not good judges of how they are
doing and managers very rarely have accurate note on how their employees have
been doing. Of course there are often metrics for measurement, but do these
really measure the ‘soft skills’ there are more important.
Rather than a once a year review of what’s good and bad the review should be
part of an on-going give and take so that employees always know how they are
doing. Likewise, any raise or benefit is not tied to the review.
I always encourage my clients to speak with manager without waiting until a
formal review is planned. The 360 can be more beneficial but few organizations
have the time or resources to do 360’s for every employee.
I’ve worked for companies which use performance reviews and as an employee and manager the process was always disappointing. But I’ve also worked for businesses with managers who were not shy about crticizing or prasing my work in a timely fashion.
I always knew where I stood and found the work much more satisfying.
That’s How We Do Things
August 21, 2010
Start with a cage containing five monkeys.
Inside the cage, hang a banana on a string and place a set of stairs under it. Before long, a monkey will go to the stairs and start to climb towards the banana. As soon as he touches the stairs, spray all of the other monkeys with cold water.
After a while, another monkey makes an attempt with the same result – all the other monkeys are sprayed with cold water. Pretty soon, when another monkey tries to climb the stairs, the other monkeys will try to prevent it.
Now, put away the cold water. Remove one monkey from the cage and replace it with a new one. The new monkey sees the banana and wants to climb the stairs. To his surprise and horror, all of the other monkeys attack him.
After another attempt and attack, he knows that if he tries to climb the stairs, he will be assaulted.
Next, remove another of the original five monkeys and replace it with a new one. The newcomer goes to the stairs and is attacked. The previous newcomer takes part in the punishment with enthusiasm! Likewise, replace a third original monkey with a new one, then a fourth, then the fifth. Every time the newest monkey takes to the stairs, he is attacked.
Most of the monkeys that are beating him have no idea why they were not permitted to climb the stairs or why they are participating in the beating of the newest monkey.
After replacing all the original monkeys, none of the remaining monkeys have ever been sprayed with cold water. Nevertheless, no monkey ever again approaches the stairs to try for the banana. Why not? Because as far as they know that’s the way it’s always been done round here.
And that, my friends, is how company policies are made.
Making Assumptions
I was in a local card shop recently when a young mother and her tow-haired 3-year-old walked in.
They had obviously been in before because the youngster made a bee-line for some cuddly stuffed animals and, after a brief stop, headed for a candy display conveniently placed at his eye-level.
“OK,,” his mom said, “you can have one.”
“No, two,” he answered.
“One,” his mother said firmly.
His mother eyed me and then the clerk, who were watching to see who would win the battle of wills. The conversation degenerated quickly to “One,” Two,” “One,” “Two.”
Exasperated the mother tried “It’s either one, or none.” The youngster, looked up sadly and holding two candies in his hand, said simply, “I was thinking of you.”
Guess how many candies mom bought.
Next time you get into an argument, make sure you think things through before you back yourself into a corner.
Too many coaches?
August 5, 2010
Are there too many coaches? A good friend recently made the off-hand comment that coaches were ‘a dime a dozen.’
There are an unending number of coaching specialties. Most marketing gurus advise coaches to find a niche and fill it. And since many certified coaches come from other fields it stands to reason that they would focus on an area where they have some previous expertise.
So, there are coaches who specialize is lifestyle, fitness, careers, nutrition, parenting, money, happiness, spirituality, organization and a host of other areas too numerous to mention.
While there are well-established schools and training programs to certify coaches there is still no nationally recognized standard so there is nothing to stop anyone from just putting up a shingle or building a web page.
I don’t know if my friend’s comment is indicative of the public’s attitude toward coaching. I certainly hope not, and my area of expertise, which focuses on career counseling, there doesn’t seem to be a shortage of people looking for a new career – either voluntarily or not.
In this country the issue is more likely to be an individual’s recognition that a coach could help them clarify their goals and make decision-making more effective and, in the long run, more effective.
But I will admit that there can be so many choices in coaching that even deciding what kind of coach you need can be daunting.
My suggestion is to look at local organizations-such as East Bay Coaches – and check out their web directory – at least it narrows the list to folks who are committed enough to join a professional organization.
Coaching or Psychology? Who decides?
August 1, 2010
I recently had a call from a new client who told me he was already seeing a psychologist, but thought that having a coach would ’round out’ the work that he needed to do.
To be honest most clients don’t understand the difference – and neither do many coaches. If fact there is an ongoing debate about where coaching falls in the psychology continuum.
For many psychologists, coaching is just another form of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) a branch of psychology which attempts to train people to make changes to patterns and lifestyles which impact their psychosis.
The difference is not so much the technique but rather the starting point of the client. Does he or she just need some help to see a new perspective or is there really an underlying clinical issue which needs to be addressed.
Many coaches work closely with psychologists so they can refer clients if they find issues which fall out of their area of expertise. In my case, my wife is a psychologist, who has also gone through training as a coach, and is a valuable resource.
Psychologists who are also coaches can often administer objective assessments if they feel there’s an underlying psychological issue.
Coaches, from non-psychological backgrounds, are not qualified to interpret test results, but they should have the training to recognize when there is a potential problem.
This is true in any situation but can be particularly significant in management coaching when a company is paying a coach to help an employee. Failure to recognize the difference between a management style that needs to be changed and a psychosis that needs to be address can lead to significant liability issues.
Most coaching clients are healthy well-adjusted individuals who just need a little help with specific issues but it’s up to the coach to make sure their potential client gets the help they need.
The New Jounali$m
July 26, 2010
The following is an excerpt from a ‘Wall Street Journal’ interview with Randy Michaels, the CEO of the Tribune Companies. It reflects an attitude that will send a chill down the spine of local journalists everywhere and explains why these newspapers will never succeed as a group and will hopefully be sold off to revert to local ownership.
“WSJ: You’ve centralized the production of foreign and national news across your papers to save money and manpower. What have you done and why?
Mr. Michaels: Stories [are] laid out in modules — standard sizes with collections of headlines, content, images [reducing the need for layout and copy editors]. If you pick up the Allentown [Pa.] Morning Call, the foreign news was written in Los Angeles and the national news was written in either Chicago or Washington. It’s probably higher quality journalism than a local paper that size is going to be able to afford.”
In many ways I still consider myself a journalist – once it’s in your blood there’s not much you can do. I have seen too many newspapers ruined by this kind of number-crunching rationale and it pains me to see it repeated.
As a coach and managerial consultant it strikes me as exactly the wrong message to be sending to the employees who are working to get you out of the financial hole you put them in.
You can read the full interview here.
Finding Your Vocation
July 12, 2010
Is it really this easy? I went to a Commonwealth Club lecture recently by Craig Nathanson, a coach and author, who’s main theme was to encourage people over 40 to find work that is not just a paycheck, but is a vocation -something that is fueled by an inner passion.
It was one of those lectures where the audience members left enthused and ready to follow his seven step approach to fame and fortune.
Unfortunately, while I agree that finding a job which provides more than an economic payoff is a great goal, I couldn’t help make a few observations based in the real world.
The concept of a fulfilling job is a relatively new concept. After World War II our parent’s generation found a ‘career’ with a company who would hire them. A higher calling was not even a consideration. Providing for the family was paramount.
The economy we face today is similar and while, as Nathanson says, the country might be stronger if we all found our vocation, the reality is that money is a necessity. During the Q and A session it was clear financial issues also concerned some audience members.
I have several clients who are perfectly happy working for a paycheck which allows them to support their family and pursue a raft of hobbies and interests which provide purpose to their lives. Nathanson suggested that they may be a rationalizing their situation and that it was not a long-term recipe for happiness.
I would also note that despite the seven-step approach Mr. Nathanson suggests, not everyone can be an entrepreneur and create a job out of their own interests. Not everyone has the ability to complete all the steps – liking writing an e-zine article – that will have the world beating a path to their door.
I have several other issues with many of Mr. Nathanson’s specifics but they would take too much room to detail. While I urge my clients to find their passion and explore ways to make it a career, I also know that enthusiasm has to be tempered with reality – especially in an economy with over 10% unemployment.
I have tremendous respect for the drive, creativity and passion of my clients but they cannot overcome the disappointment of a bad idea executed poorly.
Finding your passion may mean that you never have to work but you have to be realistic. One point I agree on with Nathanson -it’s a coaches job to help guide you toward the goals you set.
Brains in Crises
June 7, 2010
Barbara Strauch wants Baby Boomers to stop worrying about their ‘senior moments.’
Her latest book, “The Secret Life of the Grown-Up Brain,” attempts to explain what’s going on when middle-age men and women walk from one room to another but can’t remember why.
You’ll be happy to know that there are a raft of scientists and psychologists studying brain functioning and trying to figure out what’s going on. But Ms Strauch, who admits to being among the age group she’s trying to put at ease, wants everyone to know, it’s normal, and better yet, it’s nothing to worry about.
Her book, like many written by journalist is easy to read and well written. I’m not sure you’d call it scholarly but it accomplishes its purpose.
If you’re middle aged there are changes in your brain that make it tougher to learn, and remember. But, she notes, our mature brains are much better at number of things, such as recognizing patterns and putting things in context, that allow us to keep up with our younger co-workers.
She points out a number of factors which seem to impact better brain function and then spends the last chapter explaining what we can do about it. Unfortunately she notes there’s no real evidence that all those Brain Games, given away on NPR fund-raisers, really make any difference.
Fist of all, even those that have been rigorously tested in double-blind longitudinal studies, base their conclusions on self reporting. Additionally, only one of the games have even been subject to any testing – sponsored by the game manufacturers – and the rest are just basing their claims on marketing hype.
“The Secret Life of the Grown-Up Brain” is a followup to her book on teenager brain function. It’s an interesting read and should help a lot of Baby Boomers laugh at the endless collection of jokes about our absent minded antics.
It’s worth a read to find out what really going in our brain on as we age.
Greek Debt 101
May 8, 2010
I don’t usually comment on national and international news but this week I ran into an explanation of the whole Greek debt mess that helped me understand what’s going on.
In case you haven’t been following the news I’ll add some background. The world’s financial markets have been in an uproar over the last month because of fears that the Greek government will not be able to pay back money they owe to bankers and investors. The European Union has now pledged $140 billion to help them out.
The bailout has the Greek citizens up in arms because it will mean, tax increases, cuts in public spending (pensions, salaries) and a general belt-cinching they feel is unfair.
That’s the setup as they say, in the TV biz. But the reasons turn out to be pretty simple to understand.
The owner of a local business, who I know pretty well, is a Greek-American but he still has family back in the old country and visits often. So as I started to walk out of his shop with my purchase I asked, “What’s going on back home?”
“It’s simple” he says. “You see that piece of paper?” he asks, pointing to my receipt. “In all the years I’ve been going back, and all the things I’ve bought, I never got a piece of paper. They don’t write anything down, so the government has no idea who paid for what, or how much tax they should be getting. Now, they’re paying the price and they don’t like it.”
Sometimes, even the most complex international problems have a simple explanation. I’m sure the citizens of Greece have other opinions but this one makes sense to me.
Business Strategy
March 1, 2010
One of the largest hotels on the Big Island of Hawaii announced last spring that they would be closing for September and October for major renovations but that they would reopen November 1.
The announcement was a major blow to the many workers who depend on the hotel, but since the facility was among the oldest on the island, a closure during the year’s slowest season did not seem unreasonable.
The employees took the news in stride, more or less, but everyone watched anxiously to see what changes might be in store. As the two months progressed, what many assumed would be a burst of activity and employment for construction workers became mostly a bust.
No huge delivery of material or even new furniture was seen and as September turned to October the locals began to suspect the ‘renovation’ was nothing more than an excuse to cut costs during a slow period and get ready for the December-March season.
As no news was announced the employees grew increasingly nervous wondering if the hotel would indeed open. After all, with tourism down dramatically it wasn’t too much of a stretch to image the owners just throwing in the towel.
But in early winter, as the employees were allowed to return to work they breathed a sigh of relief as they cleaned, polished and readied to hotel for guests. The ‘soft opening’ saw 100 rooms occupied and the employees declared their personal recession over.
But it raises the question: Could your business just close up and hope for better times. Would your brand be strong enough to survive?