Cultural fit or Fit for Change?

[Dear Readers, I'm delighted to share this guest contribution from Deborah Wilson.
Regards, Edwin]

How do you evaluate whether your new employee is right for your workplace? Assessing whether your new employee has the right cultural fit is critical to giving them the best chance of becoming a happy and productive team member. When employees have the right cultural fit, this means that they feel challenged and supported at work. It’s that great feeling we all look for when we feel like we’re surrounded by like-minded people who are motivated by the same values as we are.

If you are the kind of person who loves a challenge, then you love working with others who see life in the same way. If you value contributing to the decision making process and having your own projects to work on, then you will thrive in an autonomous working environment.

That’s why human resources departments spend so much time and resources articulating the culture of the organisation and trying to find the right people they know will thrive there.

But what happens in a restructure? A new senior executive can change the nature of the culture overnight. When a new CEO moves in, the old ideas and culture can quickly become the way of the past. In fact employees who identified so strongly with the past culture can soon feel like outsiders!

Which employees survive in a restructure? Is it the ones who we so carefully selected based on their cultural fit? Probably not. Maybe we need to change our recruitment processes so that we look for employees who can thrive in different work environments.

Employees that rate high on flexibility and resilience are adaptable to change. They respond to change by seeing the opportunities, and the chance to take on new career directions. Instead of feeling threatened – their reaction is optimistic about new career pathways that may be opened up.

If you can find employees who have the innate capacity to be optimistic in times of change – then these are the type of people who will be more willing and prepared to adapt to changing business strategies.
So, as well as focussing on cultural fit, as part of your next selection process, look for employees who can come with you on the journey, as your organisation changes and adapts to stay successful. A nimble organisation needs flexible employees who are prepared to come along for the ride, and greet the challenges as they arise.
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Deborah Wilson is a Thought Leader at Trevor Roberts. She works with companies every day on their people strategies. If you would like advice on career transition, career development and leadership development. Linkedin Profile

 

The Labor Debacle:

Failure of Leadership or failure of team?

 

 

 

The Gillard/Rudd farce is more a failure of the team than a failure of leadership. The federal government runs a $1.3 trillion business with the Senior Leadership Team being the Cabinet. It is rare (although there have been examples) of a Senior Leadership Team behaving so ineffectively that it jeopardises the entire organisation.

There are three reasons why the Labor team failed.

First, and most important, they lost sight of their purpose. High performing teams cling tenaciously to why they are there. The ‘why’ unites a team by providing a clear picture of the future. It also keeps the strong ego’s in check.

Second, inconsistent behaviour of MP’s undermined the team’s effectiveness. High performing teams agree on the behaviours that will build trust, conflict, commitment, accountability and results (see Lencioni’s work on dysfunctions of a team). These behaviours are displayed by all members of the team and are firmly enforced. Oh, did I mention trust?

Third, the actual workings of the team contributed to its collapse. The processes and mechanics of a team including decision making and communication rhythm are hygiene factors. In other words if you don’t have them a team won’t perform, but having them won’t guarantee high performance.

Will Team Labor come back from this crisis? Everything occurs in cycles, so yes, they will bounce back in time as long as the focus is on the team not just the leadership.

 
Team trumps ego any day.

3 reasons why Linkedin isn’t working for you...

 

Over half of Linkedin’s revenue comes from its advanced backend tool for recruiters. Take 2 minutes to read this article to convince yourself of the powerful hold that Linkedin has on professionals. So, lets assume that you have a profile.  Most professionals, however, fail to fully utilise the power of Linkedin. Here’s three reason’s why:
  

#1. Inadequate or out of date information

If you don’t have enough information with the right keywords then the recruiting fraternity can’t find you.  (I disagree with the above article, however, don’t put all the detail of your history on linkedin – you don’t want recruiters to cull you before they’ve spoken with you.)

#2. Passively waiting for the next amazing job

While recruiters are extensive users, remember that they have less than 20% of the available jobs. If you really want to find your next job, first, know what you want to do, and second, use Linkedin to speak to people that may be able to help you get there.
 

#3. Use it only to get a job

Linkedin is a relationship building tool. Don’t just use it for getting a job, use it to build strong relationships and, in the process, build your brand in the market. These relationships will help you at some point in your career, you just can’t tell how, or when. Its called the Theory of Abundance.

 

Retrenched? Why “she’ll be right, mate” won’t make it right.

This is a Blog we posted last year, but with the currently economic climate the say it is, and everyone knowing someone who has been recently made redundant, we felt it a good time to re-post.

Australians are notoriously bad for asking for help. It’s in our psyche to just get on with it, not quite knowing what “it” is and trusting that somehow it will all work out fine.

This is particularly evident when people are retrenched. It never ceases to amaze me how many people hesitate to start an outplacement program when it is offered to them. Having provided outplacement services to thousands of people, I’ve seen four different types of responses to being made redundant. Individual’s responses can be categorised according to Agency (that is, how much action a person takes) and Self-awareness.

1. The Victim has low self awareness and low agency. Victims withdraw after retrenchment and take little action to find something else. Occasionally victims are saved by an unexpected opportunity from a contact.

2. The Lone Wolf is “She’ll be right, mate” personified. This group launches into a job search with energy and vigour believing that they have everything under control. Sometimes they do, but more often than not they don’t. Lone wolves are usually derailed by what they don’t know.

3. The Park Bench realises that they need to take action but don’t. Park benches spend too much time processing the emotions of the change rather than shifting focus to a positive future. This failure to take action is the most common career derailer.

4. The Phoenix is self aware enough to move quickly through the difficult emotions and takes action to make a positive change in their career. These people are the most successful careerists as they take action throughout their career.Today’s labour market is increasingly sophisticated. A transition to a new role will see you pitched against those in the Phoenix category so take every opportunity offered by an outplacement program to enhance your career management skills and self awareness.

Why the biggest obstacle to effective networking is you.

I had lunch a few weeks ago with Frank, a senior HR Manager who was in between jobs and generally seeking advice about the market. The organisation he had been working for was wound down and, as all good HR Managers do, he was the last to turn the lights off, lock the door, wander out and then start his job search. He had a holiday, rode his motorbike, did a few contracts, let his wife work hard, but a year on he felt it time to start looking for a job in earnest.

Over lunch he asked me “I’ve applied for a few jobs, some I’m not even shortlisted for so was wanting to check to see if all that stuff about networking, is still important to do?”

There was a pregnant pause. “I assume that question is rhetorical Frank?” I replied.

“Well, that’s a pretty clear answer!” he laughed.

The message here is simple. Networking is critical, and even seasoned managers find it difficult to do.

You see, networking itself isn’t hard. Removing the barriers in your own mind is.

Frank is one of the most humble, values driven people I know. He’s all about giving to others. This is a wonderful asset and his greatest strength. It is also his weakness as he overplays this strength. Frank thinks that networking is about taking and that he is imposing on others. His perspective only shifted when I pointed out to him that people will derive great value from conversations with him…but he has to pick up the phone and make those appointments.

Let’s reframe it entirely. It's not networking. It's relationship building.

Oh, and by the way, if Frank calls you, have a coffee with him – he’s a great guy.

Why your relationships will be tested this year

Reading the weather warnings current for Australia the other day really made me realise what a harsh country we live in. Not many countries would have fire and flood warnings across all their states. I wouldn’t swap it for anywhere else though.

The economic climate shows similarly signs of it being a tough year, although fortunately there aren’t any ‘severe’ warnings out there. The last few years have been similarly tough, in fact, since the GFC of 2008 the business environment has been challenging. During this time many individuals have faced difficulties, whether it being as severe as being retrenched or needing help with their job. Many of us have called in favours from people we know such as asking for advice, seeking leads for job opportunities, or sharing leads.

The challenge I see for the year ahead is that many individuals have used up a great deal of social capital, that is, the goodwill in their networks. And many people are going to need more help in the year ahead which will test the strength of the relationships we have with people. This doesn’t mean don’t ask, in fact, you don’t know the strength of a relationship until it is strained, but be conscious you don’t push it too far.

My advice is to redouble your efforts of what you put into your relationships. We all have something to give – advice, ideas, contacts, leads, content, emotional support – and now is the time to give more. Who you give to won’t be exactly who you’ll receive from, but the law of abundance works in mysterious ways. The more you give the more you’ll get back…you just don’t know when, from whom, or how. That’s part of the enjoyment of our working life.

Are your Staff Expendable?

Last week I had the privilege of speaking at the NSW Local Government HR Conference and the theme was on how to employ, enthuse and engage staff. Like many industries, the local government sector is facing rapid change. The conference highlighted a number of key impacts upon organisations, which are applicable across all industries. A key focus was how these impacts affect staff and how organisations need to be cognisant of potential fallout when letting staff go.

Expendable – that’s how staff may be viewed in these tough economic times. I’ve written before about the faces and stories behind every person retrenched, but what of the organisations that are undergoing change? They too may suffer negative impacts. For example:

• Damage to brand. In today’s socially adroit media landscape, fingers do the talking. If an organisation doesn’t care for its people, word will get around. Well-articulated and meaningful mission statements and conduct policies are important. More importantly, they mean you must walk the talk.

• Loss of talent resulting in knowledge and experience gaps. Losing good workers is a reality of retrenchments, but remember that losing exceptional staff may impede organisational recovery. Treat your people well: Both those who are leaving and those who are staying. You never know when previous employees’ knowledge and experience may be a valuable addition in future.

• Increased costs when the organisation needs to re-hire. Don’t burn bridges. Respectfully maintain professional relationships with past employees, as you never know when they may be keen to re-join the organisation in future, which reduces your hiring costs.

It’s simple: Look after your people – they are the business, and contribute to its brand, intellectual capital and relationships. When times are tough, think of other ways to tighten the belt as opposed to saving money fast through making positions redundant.