Lead Where You Are - Getting Out in Front of Change
In this excerpt from our new ebook, Lead Where You Are, due to be released January 2020, we highlight a model for leading change.
We wont spend time talking about the amount or pace of change, everyone knows change is constant and the pace is only accelerating. So rather than resisting change or trying to manage it, what’s the best strategy?
Constantly get out in front of it. Become an agent of change and lead it. Don’t wait for it to happen to you, make change happen for you. In this excerpt from our new ebook, Lead Where You Are, due to be released January 2020, we highlight a model for leading change.
See the Possibilities in Everything
All around us are possibilities for change. We often miss these opportunities because we are too busy trying to navigate the change happening to us, which ends up draining our energy and enthusiasm, while creating a negative impact on our results. Just sit and think for a moment of all the possibilities for change around you right now in both your personal and work life. These changes don’t need to be anything monumental, sometimes small changes can make the biggest differences. When we are leading change, we are not sitting around waiting for things to happen to us, we are always thinking and imagining how we can challenge current and past thinking, actions and behaviors.
NARRATIVE CASE STUDY
Remember the Blockbuster example before? They failed to adapt and see possibilities in their own industry. So why does a company named Family Video still have hundreds of locations with thousands of employees? As the sole-surviving video rental chain, how have they been able to keep their doors open? By seeing possibilities. For starters, they own their own real estate instead of renting, which has helped avoid poor lease negotiations. That is certainly a wise business decision, but that doesn’t explain why people still keep coming into the stores to rent videos. People keep coming in and keep renting videos because they have created a different atmosphere for the customer. The focus is on creating an experience for the customer when they walk in. People enjoy walking into the store. Family Video has also partnered with a pizza chain to open up locations right next door. You can call to order a pizza and a movie and have the delivery person deliver both right to your door. They also decided to purchase all their movies instead of participating in the standard revenue-sharing model, which allows them to keep all profits. In an industry where almost all of the competition has shut down, Family Video chose to see different possibilities.
THINK INCREMENTAL, NOT MONUMENTAL
As we said earlier, change does not have to be monumental. Incremental changes can be just as effective, and sometimes even more so. We have to remember that our focus should be on the things we can control, things like our attitude and behaviors, enhancing our relationships (more on this later), and looking for service and product enhancements for both our internal and external customers. There truly is possibility in nearly every aspect of our lives and businesses. The key is just to practice and cultivate your ability to recognize the change as an opportunity and not as a barrier or obstacle to our success.
“You’ve done it before and you can do it now. See the positive possibilities. Redirect the substantial energy of your frustration and turn it into positive, effective, unstoppable determination.”
– Ralph Marston
For free engagement and performance resources head over to our Resource Vault!
Lead Where You Are - Setting the Foundation
Our new ebook, Lead Where You Are, is ready to launch January 2020. A book that has been in the making for over 6 years. Inspired by the evolution currently under way in organizational and individual performance, Lead Where You Are is both a catalyst and guidebook to assist individuals and teams navigate and thrive in this rapidly evolving, highly disruptive and often unforgiving performance environment.
Our new ebook, Lead Where You Are, is ready to launch January 2020. A book that has been in the making for over 6 years. Inspired by the evolution currently under way in organizational and individual performance, Lead Where You Are is both a catalyst and guidebook to assist individuals and teams navigate and thrive in this rapidly evolving, highly disruptive and often unforgiving performance environment.
We have seen this evolution taking place firsthand as we work with hundreds of organizations and thousands of people in nearly every industry imaginable. To grow and thrive in this new environment each of us must step up and step in to lead where we are, no matter where reside in the organization, be it at the very top or in the most entry level position.
Organizations are rapidly learning that the old performance management models and theories that have existed for over forty years never truly moved the mark on performance, at least not in the way we hoped it would. To make this point, let me ask you this question. Do you like your current performance review process?Performance reviews have become “check the box” activities, conducted to cover the bases in case of legal action, not really set up to meaningfully drive better performance and individual growth.
Lead Where You Are establishes the foundation to drive better organizational, team, and individual performance in this rapidly evolving and very demanding performance environment. Over the next couple months we will be sharing excerpts from the ebook to prepare you and your team for the launch.
If you want better engagement, personally and organizationally, Lead Where You Are is your resource to assist you in getting there. We are very excited to share this work with you in the coming weeks and years.
Come back next week for our first excerpt!
For free engagement and performance resources head over to our Resource Vault!
Cornerstone Learning is a performance and leadership consulting organization that has worked with clients all over the world. Our focus is working with individuals and organizations to create performance solutions that deliver top-tier results by inspiring, enabling, and developing employee-led, leader supported, and organization enabled performance. We are able to successfully deliver this through multiple products and services such as employee surveys, online training, performance assessments, and performance coaching. The goal at Cornerstone Learning is to assist our clients in enabling success by developing a dynamic and customized pathway to deliver role model organizational and personal performance.
Organizational Performance: The C.A.R.E. Model
Every organization and individual needs a foundation to enable both personal and organizational engagement. A foundation that leads to accelerated business results. The C.A.R.E Model provides this.
Related Fun Fact of the Week:
After the turn of the 20th century, concrete began to be used as cast-in-place, poured concrete foundations. The earliest versions were pictured in Gustav Stickley’s “More Craftsman Homes” catalog starting in 1912. These early versions were constructed by digging the foundation trench, pouring a concrete footing and embedding steel reinforcement rods (rebar) into the footing.
A strong foundation is the key to a well-built home. Such is the case in personal and organizational engagement as well!
Every organization and individual needs a foundation to enable both personal and organizational engagement. A foundation that leads to accelerated business results. C.A.R.E provides and ensures organizational clarity and alignment, while properly allocating the right resources in the right place at the right time. It then enables actions and behaviors to deliver, and more importantly, sustain top-tier performance while enhancing engagement and commitment. Watch this short video to learn more about the C.A.R.E model for accelerated performance.
For free engagement and performance resources head over to our Resource Vault!
At Cornerstone Learning our focus is working with individuals and organizations to enhance organizational and individual engagement by inspiring, enabling, and developing employee-engaged, leader supported, and organization enabled performance environments. We are able to successfully deliver this through multiple products and services such as performance advising, organizational surveys, online training, and performance assessments. Our purpose is simple, to enable your success.
Team Performance: The Engagement Team Lifecycle
With the future of performance being a network of engagement and performance teams that form, perform and reform as needed to deliver results, it is key to have a model that provides a framework for team success from inception to disbanding.
Related Fun Fact of the Week:
The Replacements is a film from 2000 by Warner Bros. starring Keanu Reeves. The movie is about a team of misfits coming together during an NFL strike, overcoming obstacles and learning to play as one.
We can all learn a lesson in teamwork from Shane Falco and the replacements.
If you want better employee engagement, what a better way than to engage your employees. And with the future of performance being a network of engagement and performance teams that form, perform and reform as needed to deliver results, it is key to have a model that provides a framework for team success from inception to disbanding. The video below highlights the Engagement Team Life Cycle. It is a predicable team cycle that once understood can be accelerated and leveraged to provide focus and deliver next level team success.
For free engagement and performance resources head over to our Resource Vault!
Cornerstone Learning is a performance and leadership consulting organization that has worked with clients all over the world. Our focus is working with individuals and organizations to create performance solutions that deliver top-tier results by inspiring, enabling, and developing employee-led, leader supported, and organization enabled performance. We are able to successfully deliver this through multiple products and services such as employee surveys, online training, performance assessments, and performance coaching. The goal at Cornerstone Learning is to assist our clients in developing a dynamic and customized blue print to deliver role model organizational and personal performance.
Our View on Engagement: Start Pursuing Your Performance
To truly sustain that next level of performance success in this complex and ever-changing business environment, pursuing your performance requires ongoing performance connections, not in just once or twice a year review cycles.
Related Fun Fact of the Week:
What were the first words ever spoken on the telephone? They were spoken by Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone, when he made the first call on March 10, 1876, to his assistant, Thomas Watson: "Mr. Watson--come here--I want to see you."
What a connection that must have been!
It starts with you changing your personal model for performance, even if you exist in an organization where the primary feedback process is a performance review conducted 1-2 times per year with 80-90% of the feedback focused on past performance and little time devoted to planning or developing future performance and potential.
To truly sustain that next level of performance success in this complex and ever-changing business environment, pursuing your performance requires ongoing performance connections, not in just once or twice a year review cycles. These connections are employee led, not manager led, and consist of 15-20 minute conversations that establish an ongoing dialogue of forward feedback focused on performance clarity, alignment, and accountability. The goal of each performance connection is to ensure progress towards delivering your commitments and meeting the expectations you proactively set with your leader in each previous session.
With each performance connection, you should be engaging in discussion and development with your manager around gaining better organizational, situational, and self-awareness and enhancing your eligibility, suitability, and viability. To prepare for these performance connections you can loosely use this ratio of time in your twenty minute discussions: Five minutes on progress since last connection, five minutes on current opportunities and any barriers and your perceived impact to date and the final ten minutes should focus on establishing and aligning your next steps of commitments and setting new expectations.
If you struggle on what to discuss, here are a few examples:
Organizational, situational and self-awareness
Eligibility, suitability and viability
Personal behavior, strengths and opportunities
Current and future potential
Teamwork and your impact
Your legacy and what you want that to reflect
From each performance connection, you and your leader should leave with greater performance clarity, complete alignment, clear accountability on your commitments, and an understanding of what to expect and future desired impact.
It’s your performance, your career, in your control. Make your connection today.
If you want better employee engagement, try engaging your employees. We know you will be amazed.
For more information on ELO employee engagement contact us or shoot us an email at info@cornerstonelearning.com.
For free engagement and performance resources head over to our Resource Vault!
Cornerstone Learning is a performance and leadership consulting organization that has worked with clients all over the world. Our focus is working with individuals and organizations to create performance solutions that deliver top-tier results by inspiring, enabling, and developing employee-led, leader supported, and organization enabled performance. We are able to successfully deliver this through multiple products and services such as employee surveys, online training, performance assessments, and performance coaching. The goal at Cornerstone Learning is to assist our clients in enabling success by developing a dynamic and customized pathway to deliver role model organizational and personal performance.
Our View on Engagement: Career Progression, Matching Talent to Opportunity
Nearly every organization is faced with the same issue: How do you retain talent as organizational structures become flatter with little to no upward mobility opportunities? “Career ladders” are collapsing and a new vision for career progression is emerging.
Related Fun Fact of the Week:
A talent is an ancient unit of mass and was sometimes used as a measure of money. Some authorities say the talent typically weighed around 75 pounds. Imagine having to carry that around in your wallet! I certainly wouldn’t want that opportunity!
Nearly every organization is faced with the same issue: How do you retain talent as organizational structures become flatter with little to no upward mobility opportunities? “Career ladders” are collapsing and a new vision for career progression is emerging.
The focus on career advancement is shifting from title and position promotions to identifying and developing unique employee talents then applying those talents to organizational opportunities with the measure of performance success as the impact and results delivered, leading to the next career opportunity.
A client organization in Iowa has been shifting their career progression and performance model over the last few years. What was a typical top down, task driven, performance environment is now an employee led, leader supported, organizationally enabled organization. This all began when they conducted their first employee engagement survey four years ago. Results were turned over to an employee led engagement team chartered to make recommendations and lead the efforts to enhance overall organizational engagement.
Chris, a Brand Manager for the organization, volunteered to participate on the initial engagement team that produced tremendous results, elevating year over year employee engagement numbers by double digit percentages. During the yearlong engagement team assignment, Chris stood out to senior leadership.
Fast forward two years, the success of the organization required building a new, much larger facility. The CEO saw such potential in Chris that rather than going outside to hire or contracting someone to project manage the construction, he tapped Chris for a two-year unique opportunity to lead the expansion effort. Prior to the assignment Chris had zero general contracting experience but he did know how to lead people and projects.
Fast forward another two years, the brand-new corporate headquarters and warehouse opened two months early and right on budget under Chris’ leadership. While this was not a traditional career promotion, it stretched a top talent that produced tremendous impact and results. It has also set Chris up for future opportunities to grow, develop and showcase his value.
The future of career progression, unique talent applied to unique opportunities.
If you want better employee engagement, try engaging your employees. We know you will be amazed.
For more information on ELO employee engagement contact us or shoot us an email at info@cornerstonelearning.com.
For free engagement and performance resources head over to our Resource Vault!
Cornerstone Learning is a performance and leadership consulting organization that has worked with clients all over the world. Our focus is working with individuals and organizations to create performance solutions that deliver top-tier results by inspiring, enabling, and developing employee-led, leader supported, and organization enabled performance. We are able to successfully deliver this through multiple products and services such as employee surveys, online training, performance assessments, and performance coaching. The goal at Cornerstone Learning is to assist our clients in enabling success by developing a dynamic and customized pathway to deliver role model organizational and personal performance.