Category: Musings

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Musings

Expanding My Involvement in Social Media

Most people who know me know I’m slow to adapt to technology (with the exception of this blog that I’ve been doing for nearly five years). So it’s no surprise that I’ve resisted getting into Twitter and Facebook – despite the urging of business associates and family … until now.

I’ve collected a file folder full of “how-to” articles and tools for using Twitter from social media experts. But I was curious about what other small businesses were doing with it, so I surveyed several colleagues to learn about their experience. I got some great advice while also taking comfort from a few who are still deciding when/if to join the fray. [Special thanks to those of you who responded to my questions.]

My biggest hesitation (besides the technology thing – seriously, I’m not even experienced in sending text messages!) is the time issue. It’s a major concern my colleagues tell me, yet they are finding ways to manage it by tweeting once a day to a few times a week.

Guess I’ll have to take that jump further into the social media pool.
Stay tuned …

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Just in Time for Boss’s Day: How to Be a Better Boss

In honor of National Boss Day (Oct. 16, 2009), I’m delighted to feature this interview with Allison O’Neill, author of The Boss Benchmark and blog about how to be a better boss.

QSM: It’s unlikely a person in management aspires to be a bad boss (at least I hope that’s the case for most managers!). So why do you think there are so many bad bosses out there?

Allison: I think it’s because they kind of get swallowed up by the role – they are so busy doing, they don’t see the bigger picture. They don’t get to see themselves from the perspective their staff do. Often there are things staff feel left out of/want to know more about but the boss doesn’t pick up on this, so the team are excluded. Some bosses have a bad attitude and refuse to believe they could ever be wrong about anything (!) and that doesn’t sit well with the team! Others might be quite unapproachable, so the workers are not comfortable discussing things with them, so communication is very lacking.

Overall I think it’s the inability to step back and evaluate themselves really truthfully. It’s also not realizing that they need to be continuously growing and learning (many times a day) and not being afraid to say “I was wrong” – workers trust you when you are that humble and unafraid of honesty.

QSM: Other than learning from examples in the workplace (what to do + what NOT to do when in a supervisory position), what advice do you give most often to someone who’s a first-time boss?

Allison: Your #1 key responsibility is to see the big picture of yourself as a boss – evaluate everything you do as if you are a third party who is watching and see if you find yourself thinking “that guy is acting like a prat!”. Ask yourself EVERYDAY how you could have been a better boss today – keeping a notebook of your thoughts on this would be good.

QSM:  What do you advise someone who’s been around for a while and wants to become a better boss?

Allison: Don’t be fooled into thinking that because you are the boss (and may have been one for quite some time) that ‘you have made it’ and that you have all the skills required. You need to keep your eyes open constantly for opportunities to learn, change and develop – especially if you’ve been a boss for ages as the workplace is constantly changing – bosses need to be aware of different things/have different skills than they did even 5 yrs ago.

QSM: What are your suggestions for observing National Boss’s Day for employees fortunate to work for a great boss?

Allison: Tell them you think they do a good job – and explain why – be specific!

QSM: And for employees whose current boss is in need of serious help?

Allison: Buy them a copy of my book!

QSM: LOL … Anything that will help develop a better boss is appreciated. Thanks, Allison!

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Musings

Still Celebrating Administrative Professionals Day?

Next week office workers will be honored as part of Administrative Professionals Week, an event that includes Administrative Professionals Day (April 22, 2009).

Wondering how the current economic situation is affecting this holiday, I asked a friend what his office was doing for this event and he replied, “Nothing.” After watching my jaw drop, he quickly explained that he demonstrated his appreciation for his office staff year round – publicly praising them for jobs well done and taking them out to lunch or dinner to celebrate completion of a major project – and that his staff didn’t feel the need to participate in this designated event.

I found a mixed bag of responses in my unscientific poll of other friends. Several said they’ll continue to observe this “holiday” by taking their staff out to lunch (paid for out-of-pocket, not company funds) or giving a small gift of a plant or gift card. One colleague told me her office does not participate because company policy does not allow them to single out certain groups (non-exempt vs. exempt employees). Another colleague spoke with pride about how her office finds the event a good excuse to honor the office manager who provides exceptional service; she was also quick to add her firm recognizes staff (when deserved) year-round, not just during this event.

If you’ve participated in Administrative Professionals Day/Week in the past and plan to continue, what adjustments, if any, will you make this year?

Happy Birthday, Dilbert!

I would be remiss if I didn’t recognize the significance of this week when Dilbert turns 20. Scott Adams unleashed this gang of comic cubicle characters to the masses on April 16, 1989. Thanks, Scott, for helping us laugh at the absurdities that (unfortunately) still exist in the workplace.

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Engaging Peeps

In time for Easter, I couldn’t resist sharing these Peep links. Yes, I’m talking about THE Peeps (not the abbreviated form of “people” used today, but the confection), manufactured by Just Born in the Lehigh Valley, PA.

Disclaimer: My husband is head of the Lehigh Valley Convention & Visitor’s Bureau, and Kim Lilly, VP Marketing, wrote this fantastic Peeps post on their blog.

Because they’re manufactured here, I’m used to seeing all sorts of Peep stuff, ranging from our local newspaper’s Peeps decorating contest to Just Born’s bright yellow Peep Mobile (pictured below) …and sometimes I forget that they’re part of pop culture.  (Did you know that you can now buy Lenox Peeps?)

Whether you consume your Peeps fresh or slightly stale (which is how my husband and I prefer them) or you like to get creative with them, I hope you enjoy them!

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What I Hope to Accomplish This Year

New Year’s resolutions, best intentions, and assorted goals for 2009 – here’s a sample of what’s on my list for this year.

Professional

  • Update the look of my blog – watch for this sometime in February with the help of Karin Choi, Choice Designs, and Yvonne DiVita & Tom Collins, my publisher & friends at Windsor Media Enterprises..
  • Write an e-book or series of special reports that provide additional tools and ideas on how to engage employees with internal marketing. This publication (whatever form it ultimately takes) will continue to build on the foundation, strategy, and tools provided in my book Taking Care of the People Who Matter Most: A Guide to Employee-Customer Care.
  • Determine if I’m going to be a “late adopter” of the Twitter phenomenon. Lots of colleagues are encouraging me to tweet, but I’m still not sure whether it’s right for me or not. (Pardon me, but my technophobia is showing.)

Personal

  • Keep up with my walking for both physical & mental health. (No treadmill for me, I prefer walking outside in the fresh air where I can also get my vitamin D naturally.)
  • I also want to get back to yoga and/or learn meditation. (I attended an intro yoga class a number of years ago and loved it; I just need to find a local class that I can fit it into my schedule.)
  • Get serious about executive downsizing – that’s solopreneur-speak for wanting to lose weight. (I prefer to think of myself as “upscale” rather than overweight.)

What are you planning to do in this New Year? Equally important, how good are you at keeping to your resolutions? (Hint, hint: suggestions are welcome!)

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Year End Reflection & Tribute

Earlier this month, my husband & I enjoyed a brief pre-holiday respite at Mohonk Mountain House. My husband took these incredible photos there during the first-in-a-series of ice storms that hit the northeast.

These breathtakingly beautiful images evoke serene beauty and wonder, and I feel a similar sense of wonderment – as well as pain – as I reflect on this past year.

2008 has been a most difficult one for me personally as I managed to get through the first year without having my beloved mother in my life. She passed away one year ago today, and my life will never be the same.

So I look forward to the New Year knowing that I survived the emotional pain of this past year and hope the heartbreaking memories of her deteriorating health will begin to fade and be replaced by better memories. I’m not as emotionally raw as I was earlier this year, but the emptiness still remains and I miss her more than ever. A dear friend of mine told me what she learned about coping with such loss: “You never get over it, but somehow you get through it.”

I’m getting better in accepting the many triggers that evoke sadness (and, increasingly, smiles) as I appreciate the wonder of having had her in my life for a little over 50 years. In the new year and those to come, I want to focus more on happier memories and the profound impact she had on me … an impact that continues as she lives in my heart.

Best wishes for a happy, healthy, and peaceful New Year.
[Photos by Michael Stershic]

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Amass Less, Value More (A Lesson for the Holiday & Everyday)

I’ve been trying to focus on the positive during the holidays despite constant media attention to the economic crisis. And I’ve found an upside to the down economy: we’re learning to live with less ‘stuff.’

To help us cope better with less, business & life coach Steve Davis advocates that instead of continually amassing more stuff, we learn how to better use what we really need.

According to Steve:

“Unconscious compulsions for “more input” seldom satisfy our true needs. Nor will having piles of unread books and magazines ringing our desks reduce the nagging sense that there is some piece of information that will really change everything for us.

Satisfaction comes from fully digesting and extracting the fine nutrients from what we already have, and making choices for new input based on our true values and passions, not our casual likes and vague interests.”

This is an excerpt from his excellent article, Assimilation vs. Accumulation – The practice of getting full nourishment from everything in your life. It’s worth reading to learn how we can better assimilate what’s important such as: relationships, customers, ideas, information, and experience. (Note: While written for an audience of facilitators, his message is applicable to everyone.)

Best wishes to all for a happy & safe holiday!

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Where is the “Human” in Human Resources?

Tina Hamilton, founder & CEO of hireVision (an HR and hiring management firm) and a colleague of mine, asked the question, “Does the ‘human’ in Human Resources still exist?”

She’s worried about “the emotional element of HR. The empathetic approach to dealing with employees as living people versus machines that we control and maneuver to produce our goods and services.”  Her concern is based on what she sees as “an epidemic of HR professionals being desensitized.”

Tina attributes part of this epidemic to the required attention to regulatory compliance and monitoring of a growing assortment of labor laws. Part of it also comes from years of HR downsizing and/or outsourcing with technology filling in the gaps. (Have an HR issue? Call the HR Hotline: press 1 for payroll … press 2 for employee benefits … press 3 for employee relations … )

It’s good that someone in HR is asking about the “human” element in human resources. I also think this question needs to be addressed at the executive level. After all, it’s the leadership of an organization that is ultimately responsible for its human resources, not just the HR staff.

If top management really cares about its employees, it will enable the HR staff and all managers to treat the company’s employees as humanly as possible – with dignity and respect for them as real people with real concerns, not unfeeling minions.

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Family in Business: A Unique Perspective

I know a lot of companies who pride themselves on creating a “family” atmosphere in their workplace. A family-oriented corporate culture can mean a lot of things, such as a collective group of people who share something in common … who feel a special sense of belonging … who take pride in their company’s heritage …

So I was surprised recently when talking with the owner of a family-owned business who was adamantly opposed to having a family-oriented company culture. This type of culture idealizes the concept of family, he explained, while the reality is not all families are fully functional; e.g., sibling rivalry, overly demanding parents, recalcitrant children, etc. Instead, he prefers to describe his company as a “community of co-workers and collaborators.”

The reality is families, as well as corporate entities, can be dysfunctional. It’s all relative.

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Administrative Professionals Day: Is It Still Relevant?

Tomorrow we observe “Administrative Professionals Day.” While the name has been updated – it was originally called Secretary’s Day when it started in 1952 – I wonder if the concept is out of sync in today’s workplace.

Back in the day before technology transformed the workplace, the secretarial position was critical to supporting management – this is the person who did all the typing/word processing (rarely, if ever, did you see a typewriter on a manager’s desk), placed calls, scheduled meetings and whatever else was necessary to keep the office running smoothly. True, most of these support type positions were held by women … in a paternalistic, sometimes chauvinistic organizational culture.

I know this from experience. In one of my early jobs in banking I held the position of Administrative Assistant in Corporate Planning, and my job description included making coffee for the weekly Senior Managers’ Meeting.

Now technology allows most managers do their own “typing” on their laptop or desk computers … schedule meetings on their hand held PDA’s … and connect directly to others with e-mail and cel phones. Today there are many people employed in a range of “support” positions in organizations, so do we need a special holiday to recognize Administrative Professionals?

I’ve heard a number of companies no longer observe this “holiday” (to the chagrin of restaurants and the greeting card industry).

What about your company?