Archive for February, 2009

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Okay, there is no rocket science involved with increasing your productivity and gaining additional time for high performance outcomes. Its all about how you handle the highest priorities. You know, the reasons you are on the payroll or driving your business. Priorities are at the pinnacle of importance.

Most people have no clue as to what priorities are. They have no lists – to do list, goals, objectives or any type of action plan. They tend to “wing it” regarding their time. They get things done based upon two factors: 1) They do what they are told to do by someone else (reaching the goals others have set). or,
2) Just doing what is fun and easy – no real effort involved.

So what separates the high performers from the “thundering herd” of individuals today? Continue reading ‘Priorities Drive Productivity and Time Management’ »

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Posted by Voss Graham on February 13, 2009 at 5:07 am under Performance management.
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One of the major challenges for leaders is how to develop their people. Development is all about improvement in someone’s performance. Unfortunately, most leaders don’t know how to do this core function of leadership. Fortunately, it is easy to learn – given a desire to coach and improve others.

Coaching is a key skill for leaders and the sooner they learn how to coach, the fastest their people will grow into high performers. In order to coach others you will need to do the following: Continue reading ‘Coaching Performance Improvement’ »

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Posted by Voss Graham on February 12, 2009 at 5:18 am under Coaching.
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Yes, you read the title correctly. R & D is the key to getting Top Talent in your organization. Research and Development is only half right with my version of R & D. The new version of R & D is Recruit and Develop. I borrowed this term from college football. During the major recruiting event of the year ( First Wednesday in the month of February), several coaches were talking about the dual importance of getting the “best” prospects to sign on – yet, it was the coaches responsibility to Develop the talent during their tenure on campus.

What a great analogy for all organizations to follow. First, recruit the “best” potential people for your company. And second, Develop the talent to the next level of performance and productivity. Interestingly, this seems to fit the methods used by the top companies. You know the ones that are ranked in both “Best Place to Work” and the “Top Performing Companies” lists. Continue reading ‘R & D Key to Top Talent in Organizations’ »

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Posted by Voss Graham on February 11, 2009 at 4:43 am under Hiring, Selection and Retention.
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If performance management sounds complicated, you’re right. It is complicated because it plays a big part in the success of an organization, and anything with a high value isn’t easy. It requires focus and commitment, and it isn’t the same for every employee. So what is the good news? Take a look at the things you can do to make the role of performance management more effective and less complicated:

  • Work closely with the company’s executive or management team to create a clear picture of what your employee’s job is responsible for and how it fits with the company’s overall strategy. Document the results and refer to the job’s key accountabilities often.
  • If possible, conduct a job benchmark to get a true, unbiased representation of the job’s requirements for success so you can coach the employee in a way that matches these job requirements.
  • Share and discuss this information with the employee to be sure you both understand the job in the same way.
  • Use a personal assessment to uncover the employee’s behaviors, or how they communicate and go about the work, as well as what motivates them to take action. Understanding this from the beginning, rather than waiting for time to tell, will make performance management more effective and enjoyable right from the start.
  • Implement 360 degree assessments that utilize questions based on the same areas measured in the personal assessments. This feedback will allow you to consider others’ perceptions and how they compare to the employee’s self-perception.
  • Rather than a project management tool that tracks assignments you have given your employee, try a system that puts them in the driver’s seat. As the employee submits their own game plan for approval, they are learning how to prioritize their responsibilities in a way that fits the company’s overall strategy.

Once you have identified the right role of performance management in your company and have found ways to integrate each area of management into one, complete process, positive results will be seen at every level in the company.

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Posted by J Block on February 10, 2009 at 4:31 am under Performance management.
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How Assessment Results Boost Retention and Increase Performance

Managing employee retention is one of the biggest challenges many companies face.  With so many employee retention strategies out there, it is often difficult to determine which one will work for you, your company and more importantly, your employee.  The good news is, improving employee retention doesn’t have to bee as hard as you might think, but it must be something that is a concern from day one, not when you start to feel an employee slipping away.

When you consider the employment cycle from beginning to end, it is apparent that training and on-boarding is the most crucial aspect of retention.  A company can hire the best candidate who is destined for success, but it is up to the employer to give them the training, attention and motivation it takes to build a dedicated superior performer.  Without it, the employee is not likely to build a strong connection with their new employer and will quickly feel under-appreciated, unimportant and simply lost in the shadows of the organization. Continue reading ‘Managing Employee Retention with On-Boarding and Training’ »

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Posted by J Block on February 9, 2009 at 5:17 am under Hiring, Selection and Retention.
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Using a race car driving analogy – it’s time to accelerate out of the curve (down turn for business issues) or we will create more problems for the economy. Okay, so what do I mean by this statement? It means put some control back into the equation.

To use the knowledge of the racing drivers, they learn early that the key to maintaining control of their cars in high speed turns is to accelerate into the turn and through the curve. This power surge keeps the car in an invisible groove and the driver maintains control. No spinning out of control – which happens when you slow down in a curve. The lost of traction and speed allows the car to slip on anything in its path through the turn.

We can use this knowledge to keep our economy, our business or our sales career moving in the right direction even during this economic down turn. Accelerate your pace regarding decisions and actions taken. The people that think they are playing it safe by decelerating are already losing control. They are laying off people, eliminating essential staff members (knowledge and experience), eliminating developmental activities and taking no risks with change or innovation.

Stupid is as Stupid does! To paraphrase Forrest Gump.

Make a commitment to accelerate out of the curve starting today. Join the ranks of the confident that believe we have choices. The future can get brighter if we take control of our short term activities. Make things happen at a faster pace. Take a chance on development so your people can accelerate their successes. You can make a difference. Especially if people just say “no” to the statusquo.

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Posted by Voss Graham on February 6, 2009 at 8:31 am under Leadership.
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My friend Ron Karr wrote an outstanding article in his latest newsletter that I wanted to share with you. So here it is:

Think about this. If you reduced your fees or prices by 20%, you would need to increase your sales volume by 400% to make the same profit you were making before the price cut. This is what Donald D. Juschartz, County Extension Director at Michigan State University, discovered in his study of how Price vs. Volume relationship may alter the retailer’s thinking.

In declining markets, it is very tempting to lower one’s prices to hold on to business, especially if your customers are demanding it. Yet, some are probably lowering prices too fast too soon. And in some cases, it may not even be necessary. Realize that for every price reduction you agree to, you are going to have to sell more to make the same. Continue reading ‘Increase Profits and Revenues in Tough Times’ »

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Posted by Voss Graham on February 5, 2009 at 11:00 am under Sales.
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The past two days we spent time in Baton Rouge and discovered an interesting thing about relationships – even with complete strangers! The event was the Bayou Bash and the common link was LSU football. (You will remember that I used college football analogies in my B2B sales book – Three Games of Selling.)

We met several people who took us into their network of people – just because we have a common interest in the LSU football team. Instant friendships and bonding took place. Information and stories were shared and the bond of friendship became strong.

Now, in the world of business, image how great it would be if people would find a common interest (like helping each other). Sharing of information in an open and honest fashion would open doors that currently seem unopenable and locked. With this freedom of information flow, ideas and solutions to issues would have an opportunity to grow.

There are some organizations or really – people within the organizations – that find this approach to be exciting and productive. So, when confronted with an opportunity to develop a new relationship – find a common link of interest and discuss it. You will find out if a true relationship can be developed during this short exchange. If you feel comfortable, then open up about your issues and ask for suggestions. Your life may change for the better.

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Posted by Voss Graham on February 4, 2009 at 9:22 pm under Effective Communication.
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After a weekend of reading books, blogs and newsletters, I realized it is now time for decisiveness and action. No more excuses! Too many people are just talking about doing things – change, opportunities, ideas are everywhere. Yet, action seems to take a back seat.

Clearly if we are to change our future – personally or business – action is the key to getting us to the goal. And, making a decision is the starting point. Once you make a decision to do something your energy level and emotional commitment increase. Yet, many people fail at this simple step.

Indecision is the killer of progress. Confusion and doubt lead the fight against progress. These emotions are based upon the fear of failure. If your fear of failure is higher than the drive to accomplish and achieve goals or solve your major problems – then life is a scary thing.

I believe that life was designed by the master designer to come with challenges and obstacles in our path. It is our responsibility to learn from these challenges, design our lives to deal with challenges and become accountable for our accomplishments in life. Again, the starting point is learning how to become decisive.

The ability to make decisions is the starting point – not the end point. In fact, just making any decision can have negative consequences if no thought is applied to the decision. So, let me clarify my starting position:

“The Best Decisions are based on thoughtfulness of action, which ultimately becomes the right decisions due to the outcomes and results gained.”

The only time to go slow is the thoughtfulness part of the equation. Think about the possible outcomes before you commit to a series of action steps. Identify a minimum of three alternative paths to get to the outcomes you target. Pick the best alternative relative to the effect or impact of the outcome. By the way, this process can be done in nanoseconds for the more experienced or a couple of hours if necessary for exploring alternatives. However, days, months and years of delay are not part of the options.

Delay is a nice word for procrastination – the great killer of initiative. Make a decision and take immediate action to launch. Your energy levels will increase, your ideas will flow and your probability of success increases with each step toward your goal.

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Posted by Voss Graham on February 2, 2009 at 4:56 am under Personal Development.
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