Posts Tagged ‘beyondboarding(tm)’

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April Showers Bring May Flowers

Wednesday, April 3rd, 2013
And flowers bring smiles to the people in our organizations. But what gets them inspired to be engaged, productive and happy at work?

To me, this title is a metaphor for motivation. People like flowers are motivated to grow and develop in a variety of different ways given the right amount of nurturing. And different generations are especially motivated by different things. 

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Millenials: What gets them to do the Harlem Shuffle?

  • Flexibility. This generation wants a say in when and where work is done.
  • Change and Challenge. They do not see their work as linear.  They like variety and challenges.  
  • Venting. Don’t interpret their rebellious nature as negative. Remember they like the challenge.
  • Development and Growth. Look for ways to turn their interests into skills they can use in the workplace.  They are a great source for innovation and idea generation.
  • Impact and Results. Break up tasks into component parts and give feedback at those intervals.
  • Tools and Technology. They are the most comfortable with technology and see it as an extension of who they are. Embrace social computing from the inside and define sensible rules for acceptable use.
  • Motivation. Explain how their performance has direct impact on the success or failure of the company.
  • Recognition. Recognize and celebrate accomplishments.
  • Communicate. Clearly and consistently.
  • Trusting Environment. Set rules and policies that really matter.

Gen Xers: What gets them moving and shaking?

  • Flexibility. This generation needs too manage their other priorities, such as dependent children, aging parents, and even educational endeavors. This flexibility can be as simple as providing schedule changes to accommodate these needs.  Understand that these are needs, not wants. 
  • Collaboration and Teamwork. They work best in groups.
  • Recognition. Ways that connect with what they value the most, such as handwritten thank you notes for a job well done, a tangible gift, such as flowers or gift certificates.

Boomers: What gets them rockin’ and rollin’?

  • Position, Power and Prestige. They are often traditionalists, and the perks of the position matter. Titles and authority commensurate with responsibility.
  • Participation and Connection. Encourage then to join associations and attend conventions that keep them professionally connected to their peers. 
  • Collaboration. They are motivated by working together on professional projects in affiliation with others like them.
  • Compensation. More than just the salary this also includes profit sharing and health care benefits including long-term care.

And Everyone Wants…

  • Frequent Communication. “Why,” not just the “what” of projects and priorities.
  • Inclusion. Beyond, what affects them most directly.
  • Fun. To have fun at work, with a capital “F!”

How will you grow your employees this spring?

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Ready to Try Something Different?

Wednesday, September 5th, 2012

 

From the archives…

My husband Jed is not a vegetarian but he does eat tofu on occasion. I’ve never developed a taste for it and the first few times he cooked it I questioned his taste. He often seeks low-fat, low-cholesterol alternatives to meat products as a small step towards keeping his cholesterol under control. I’ve loved some of the tofu-based items he’s brought home, and hated others.

When sitting down to write this week’s blog, I thought about last night’s tofu dinner and realized tofu and learning design actually share a number of characteristics. 

Tofu is often overlooked and misunderstood when people see it in the grocery store. If they even know what it is, they may assume that it’s not right for them, that it’s for “those people” — the vegetarians — and has no place in their diet.

Learning design and development is often viewed that way. Many people assume they’re natural communicators. They know their issues, topic content, products and services so well that they think putting together a PowerPoint, a workbook and some notes can turn their ideas into any classroom course, a conference presentation or a seminar. That may work occasionally, but it takes more if you are trying to create a sophisticated program or presentation that optimizes your subject matter expertise,

Learning design is really a misunderstood skill.

Tofu takes on the flavor of whatever it’s cooked with. The same goes, generally, for learning design. Many people ask me if I’ve ever created courses for this industry or that industry or ask if I’m subject matter expert on one topic or another. I’ve worked in sales training, customer service, healthcare, financial services, and with marketing/public relations agencies and professional service firms, to name a few.

The great thing about smart learning design and development, as well as a competent designer, is that we incorporate design methodologies that are versatile and can be applied to any industry, topic or process. Knowing how to use the methodologies combined with the right materials preparation, skills and subject matter expertise makes it possible to create an instructionally sound program, presentation or initiative for any organization and any level of talent.

If you’ve never considered using a consulting partner like WOW! transformations, why not? We can help you optimize the return on your talent investment using our strategic approach to employee and organizational growth and development.

Do what you will with tofu, but isn’t it time to give WOW! transformations a try?

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Your Talent is Your Investment: Part 2

Monday, March 26th, 2012

By Jill Heineck, Focus Relocation, Guest Blogger and WOW! transformations Strategic Partner

Talent Development

According to Nettie Nitzberg, principal at WOW! transformations, a talent development consulting firm based in Boston, MA, “inboarding” is just as important for an internal employee beginning a new assignment as onboarding is to a new hire. Nitzberg, who works with global Fortune 500 companies, says that creating an initiative to “on or inboard” an employee into the culture of their new assignment is a great way to help them acclimate to their new organization or department, creating engagement from the first day and ensuring that the organization realizes a return on their talent investment. This, in addition to consistent contact from the hiring manager, HR, and others throughout the move is essential to a successful transition.

As mobile families are already anxiously anticipating changes, intuitive companies recognize that front-end engagement is essential to a successful transition.

“Setting and managing proper expectations is one of the keys to the employee’s success on a new assignment,” said Haesloop. With more than 500 moves per year, UPS is a prime example of how to front-load engagement strategies. “A well-designed assignment objective should be known and understood at the beginning of the assignment.” That, coupled with periodic feedback sessions, will ensure those identified objectives are in scope, Haesloop added. 

Proactive and Innovative Engagement

By taking a proactive approach through innovative engagement strategies, a company can protect the financial, talent, and mobility investments across the organization. “Once an employee has accepted the new assignment, we expect them to be completely engaged in their new assignment and unencumbered by the logistical components associated with getting them and their family to their destination,” said Haesloop. “It is important that your relocation service provider(s) is a trusted partner who knows and understands your culture, relocation strategy and philosophy, and expectations.”

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Click here to read the full article in Mobility Issues: March 2012 Issue

To Contact Jill:
Jill Heineck, CRP | Chief Relocation Officer
Phone: 877.550.RELO
jill@focusrelocationllc.com
www.FocusRelocationLLC.com
Twitter: @jheineck

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New Members Will Benefit From beyondboarding™

Tuesday, March 13th, 2012

 

When we first started looking at the process of beyondboarding™, we focused on developing a process for the workplace.  Beyondboarding™ is an onboarding initiative that goes beyond orientation and takes a strategic approach to employee and organizational growth and development.

As we discussed beyondboarding™ with customers, prospects and colleagues we realized additional audiences can benefit from WOW! transformations’s beyondboarding™ approach. Beyondboarding™ is not just for employees.  This series explores initiating a beyondboarding™ approach with the following relationships:

Our focus today is on the final audience, new members. Everyone can think of a time when they were a new member of a networking group, civic or business organization, church or synagogue, committee or the PTA … You enter the room and don’t recognize a soul. Everyone is talking to someone and you want to look busy.  You grab a cup of coffee, and search the room for a friendly face or someone not engaged in a conversation.  It’s not easy to blend in and feel comfortable, and you want to make a good first impression. But this organization is new to you and taking the first step is not easy. 

Organizations that take a beyondboarding™ approach to help orient new members can benefit greatly by creating a new member onboarding initiative.  Considering the following steps and benefits when beyondboarding™ a new member:

  1. RIGHT:  Any good partnership needs the right person, on the right team, with the right experience.  Pre-boarding helps new members assess what they need to do to fit into or become active, and benefit personally and professionally from their membership investment. It also helps the organization identify strengths and competencies that the new member brings to the organization.  It is all about creating a great match and ensuring both the organization and the new members get a return on investment.
  2. KNOWLEDGE:  As important as it is for you to know the new member, it is just as important for them to learn about your organization and all it has to offer. This may include a new member onboarding program, matching a new member with a buddy or mentor, introducing the new member to the board or committee heads, providing a tour of the facility, explaining information on the organization’s history, mission, values and structure, and inviting the new member to events and ensuring someone introduces her to existing members so she can feel comfortable and confident that she has made (or will be making) the right choice to join.  Image the ROI when your new member has strong organizational knowledge from the start and wants to play an active role from Day 1.
  3. CULTURE: Every organization needs members who mesh with its core values— the principles that define who you are as an organization and that shape the organizations mission and vision.  When you are marketing your organization and seeking new members it is imperative there is a culture match as well.  Both the new member and the organization are both looking for a ROI and the culture and goals of the membership organization are critical for both parties.
  4. COMMUNICATION: A new member must be in the loop from Day 1.  Make sure she is signed up to receive email notifications and event invitations, and help her navigate the website to gather information. Have board members call to welcome her to the organization and answer questions.  Ensure the new members’ buddy or mentor invites her to meetings and events that may be of interest and attends to ensure she is comfortable and meets the right people.  Gather a group of existing members together and meet the new member for coffee or lunch to communicate opportunities and get her involved.
  5. CLARITY:  Like any good employee onboarding program, a new member needs to have focused clarity around her role and expectations as well as the role of the organization and the goals they are aiming to achieve.  Establishing alignment from the start ensure everyone is focused in the right direction.
  6. LONG-TERM RELATIONSHIP:  It is easier to keep an existing member and have them grow and develop (post-boarding) within your organization than having to continue to market and bring new members on board.  Image the impact an beyondboarding(tm) initiative can have for a new member and the how you could kick-start your relationship by helping them to get to know your organization from Day 1.

To make your new member an active participant in your organization, begin with a beyondboarding™ mindset.  Consider the key steps above, but remember it’s only the beginning.  There are many other things that you can and should be to ensure success with your new members.  Click here to read more about beyondboarding™.

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Vendors Will Benefit From beyondboarding™

Thursday, March 1st, 2012

 

When we first started looking at the process of beyondboarding™, we focused on developing a process for the workplace.  Beyondboarding™ is an onboarding initiative that goes beyond orientation and takes a strategic approach to employee and organizational growth and development.

As we discussed beyondboarding™ with customers, prospects and colleagues we realized additional audiences can benefit from WOW! transformations’ s beyondboarding™ approach.

This series explores initiating a beyondboarding™ approach with the following relationships:

 

Vendors today play many roles.  They may be selected to provide products or services; support our organization’s infrastructure, repair something that is broken or fill a gap on your team.  We may not think of vendors as partners in helping us to reach our goals, or as a team member.  But if you change your mindset and follow key steps to beyondboarding™, a new vendor can boost your ROI:

  1. RIGHT:  Any good partnership – especially one with a new vendor, requires the right fit with products and services the vendor is offering or providing.  When selecting a vendor through the proposal process or pre-boarding phase, you must ensure that they are the right people or organization to help you reach your goals and to work with your organization.
  2. KNOWLEDGE:  As important as it is for you to know the vendor you are working with, it is just as important for them to know your organization.  This may include a tour of the facility, key resources to contact or inform, tips and tricks for working with the team, billing process and network access.  Image the ROI when your new vendor has strong institutional knowledge from the start.
  3. COMMUNICATION: A good manager will also discuss with her new employee the best way to for ongoing communication.  This is important as well in a vendor relationship, especially at the beginning to ensure that nothing falls through the cracks, information is clarified or received in a timely fashion, and knowledge is processed in a timely manner.  Discussing your communication strategy right from the start is a great way to set the foundation for how you work together.
  4. CLARITY:  Like any good employee onboarding program, a new vendor needs to have focused clarity around her roles, responsibilities, deliverables, expectations and goals to eliminate misunderstanding and establish alignment from the start.

To make your vendor relationship a success, begin with a beyondboarding™ mindset.  Consider the key steps above, but remember it’s only the beginning.  There are many other things that you can and should be to ensure success. Click here to read more about beyondboarding™.

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Clients Will Benefit From beyondboarding™

Monday, February 13th, 2012

 

When we first started looking at the process of beyondboarding™, we focused on developing a process focused on the workplace.  Beyondboarding™ is an onboarding initiative that goes beyond orientation and takes a strategic approach to employee and organizational growth and development.

However, when we began to talk about beyondboarding™ with customers, prospects and colleagues we realized additional audiences can benefit from a beyondboarding™ approach outside of new or newly promoted employees.

This series will look how to initiate a beyondboarding™ approach with the following audience relationships:

 

The following are five key steps when beyondboarding™ a new client:

  1. RIGHT:  Any good partnership – especially one with a new client, requires the right fit — with products and services the client is offering or providing; the right talent – the folks working on the team or collaborating with you; and the right company – the reason you selected this client is because there is a culture match.  When selecting a client through the proposal process or pre-boarding phase, you must  ensure that they are the right people or organization to help you reach your goals and will ensure a ROI.
  2. KNOWLEDGE:  As important as it is for you to know the client you are working with, it is just as important for them to know your organization.  This should include things such as your formal and informal culture, values and vision, communication preferences, tips and tricks for working with the team, billing process and network access.   Gaining company and job knowledge from Day 1 helps employees become productive. About 89 percent of new hires lack the institutional knowledge required to get up to speed quickly and become effective on the job within their first 90 days. (Strong Start To Job Success By William C. Byham, Ph.D).  Image the ROI when your new client has strong institutional knowledge from the start.
  3. LONG-TERM RELATIONSHIP:  A new employee decides within three weeks whether or not an employer is a right fit; 4 percent of new employees leave a job after the first day; more than 20 percent of employee turnover occurs in the first 45 days. (The Wynhurst Group).  Image the impact an onboarding program can have for a new client and the how you could kick-start your relationship by helping them to get to know you/organization from Day 1.
  4. CLARITY:  Like any good employee onboarding program, a new client needs to have focused clarity around roles, responsibilities, deliverables, expectations, and goals, as well as a deeper understanding of the organization to ensure there is no misunderstanding and alignment from beginning to end.
  5. COMMUNICATION: A good manager will also discuss with her new employee the best way to for them to have ongoing communication.  This is imperative in a client relationship, especially at the onset to ensure that nothing falls through the cracks, information is clarified, files and documents are sent and received effectively and, most of all, that everyone knows where they stand with the person, client or team members.  Discussing your communication strategy right from the start is a great way to set the foundation for how you will work together.

To make your client relationship a success, begin with a beyondboarding™ mindset.  Consider the five key steps above but remember that is only the beginning.  There are many other things that you can and should be to ensure success. 

Click here to read more about beyondboarding™ and some of the other components that work developing a long-term and successful relationship with your clients.

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A Partnership Will Benefit From beyondboarding™

Monday, February 6th, 2012

 

During the past several years WOW! transformations entered into several different types of partnerships.  They range from client engagements to strategic alliances and sub-contracting work.  One thing we’ve learned is that partnerships can benefit from a beyondboarding™ initiative.  Beyondboarding™ is an onboarding initiative that goes beyond orientation and takes a strategic approach to employee and organizational growth and development.

Here are five ways to embed a beyondboarding™ mindset into your partnership arrangements:

  1. RIGHT:  Any good partnership needs the right person, on the right project, with the right experience.  Pre-boarding helps partners assess what they need to ensure they are sourcing and selecting the right talent that can work within the company or project’s parameters.
  2. CULTURE: “Every organization needs employees who mesh with its core values— the principles that define who you are as an organization and that shape day-to-day business decisions. Employees who do not adhere to a shared corporate culture dilute it, detracting from the essence that gives your company its identity and helps it achieve aggressive goals. I’ve found that in my business, alignment with my company’s culture and values counts far more than do skills or experience.” (Alan Lewis, Grand Circle Travel, HBR)
    This is very true for partners. When you are sourcing the right talent is it is imperative there is a culture match as well.
  3. TEAM:  It is also critical that the person entering in the partnership ensures she is a good fit with the project team, as well as the client team if it’s a sub-contracting arrangement. This can be identified in the initial sourcing stages when determining the right fit for the partnership.  But should also be thought out when matching Subject Matter Experts (SME’s) to client projects or pulling together work teams.
  4. CLARITY:  Like any good employee onboarding program, a new partner needs to have focused clarity around her roles, responsibilities, deliverable, expectation, goals, as well as a deeper understanding of the organization (partnership organization as well as the client organization) to ensure there is no miss understanding and that there is alignment from beginning to end.
  5. COMMUNICATION: A good manager will also discuss with her new employee the best way to for them to have ongoing communication.  This is so critical in a partnership arrangement, especially at the onset of the partnership and throughout as well to ensure that nothing falls through the cracks, information is clarified, files and documents are sent and received effectively and most of all that everyone knows where they stand with the person, client or team members.  Creating a communication strategy is one way to ensure this happens right from the start.

To make your partnership a success begin with a beyondboarding™ mindset.  Consider the five key steps above but remember that is only the beginning.  There are many other things that you can and should be to ensure success.  Click here to read more about beyondboarding™ and some of the other components that work in a partnership.

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Best of WOW! Bytes of Wisdom 2011

Monday, December 19th, 2011

 

WOW! Bytes of Wisdom has been busy this year providing subscribers key bits of “wisdom” from the talent-development industry.  To end the year, the following are the Best of WOWs! 2011 Blogs.

 

Keep Your Best Employee From Jumping Ship

Jan. 27, 2011

A recent article by Fortune contributor Jena McGregor, How To Keep Your Star Employees, reinforces a widespread problem: Some of our best employees are ready to jump ship.  She cites four retention strategies used by top companies to combat this challenge.

 

Get Onboard and Go Beyond

Jan. 5, 2011

If you make only one business goal this year, it should be to focus on keeping your top talent.  It’s a challenge many businesses don’t think about until it’s too late, but this could be the year that turnover stalls your business.

 

Talent Management Trends: Are You Onboard or Drifting?

Feb. 1, 2011

How often have you heard a business executive brag that “our people are our most important asset”?   Sounds good, but how many companies actually work strategically to enhance that asset?  A recent post on The Daily Recruiter reviewed emerging trends in “talent management,” the process of attracting, developing and retaining skilled employees.  The article suggests several important strategies.

 

Managing Talent Is a Priority

May 17, 2011

Key findings from global consulting firm PwC’s 14th Annual Global CEO Survey show that talent is a top priority for CEOs, moving up from third last year.. The results, reported in a Talent Management article, is great news for the economy.  “The ‘war for talent’ is not just a numbers game — it means finding, retaining and motivating employees whose skills fit the company’s strategy,” said Ed Boswell, U.S. Advisory People and Change practice leader at PwC.

 

The War for Talent Crosses the Ocean

June 22, 2011

The problem is global.  Whether they are seeking talent in the United States, Asia, South America or Europe “employers are being inundated with unsuitable candidates and struggling to fill vacancies, and talented individuals are staying put, concluding that the grass is greener on their own side of the fence in these volatile economic times,” according to a June 16 article in Talent Magazine.

 

Global Talent Challenges – Are you stumbling or doing it right? (Part 1 and 2)

June 8-9, 2011

Recruiting executives from diverse cultures is essential for success in today’s global economy.   It’s also a considerable challenge.  Do it right, and the company benefits from the diversity.  Do it badly, and the company stumbles and misses opportunities.  According to the Manpower’s 2010 Global Talent Shortage Survey, nearly a third of employers worldwide have difficulty filling positions because of a lack of suitable talent.  In EMEA countries, the number is 23 percent; 41 percent in Asia Pacific; and 34 percent in the Americas.

 

How to Successfully Relocate Employees

Sept. 28, 2011

By Jill Heineck, Focus Relocation, Guest Blogger, and WOW! strategic partner

Relocation has become an important tool in advancing corporate strategies.   But people are not chess pieces.  Even the “right” move for someone can produce negative consequences.  The risks are even higher in companies that don’t already practice careful management of individuals’ careers, from onboarding to retirement.

 

Innovative Ideas to Add Pizzazz to Your Onboarding Initiatives

Oct. 26, 2011

I was reviewing articles for this week’s blog and came across one that identified high-impact, low-cost ideas that can add pizzazz to your current onboarding initiatives.  These are perfect for smaller organizations nimble enough to get creative and engage stakeholders.  For larger organizations, these may prompt you to tweak existing initiatives.

 

Onboarding ROI: Metrics for Measuring the True Value

Oct. 3, 2011

By Kyle Lagunas, HR Analyst with Software Advice, Guest Blogger

As business leaders look for the best ways to maximize the ROI of their workforce, the onboarding process is often overlooked.  For many, onboarding is reduced to a mere checklist of tasks to be completed and forms to be submitted.  What these organizations fail to understand is that an employee who experiences a smoother onboarding process will be more connected to the organization, better trained and quicker to produce.

We look forward to sharing more insights in 2012 and invite you and your colleagues to subscribe to our blog or become a Guest Blogger.

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Globility 2012

Wednesday, November 30th, 2011

 

By Jill Heineck, Focus Relocation, Guest Blogger

Despite the state of the economy, global companies still need to plan for growth. In addition to the usual growth plans, mobilizing the right talent plays a big role in an org’s success.

One path to a success globility program is to make it a company mission to connect HR’s efforts of pre-boarding, onboarding and post-boarding (beyondboarding™) with mobility. Take a proactive approach by looking the 2012 goals across the organization, and consider the talent that is required to meet those goals. This, in addition to an objective review of the current mobility strategy, to see if what is currently in place will support future objectives.

A majority of the time, the mobility strategy needs tweaking, in several areas. One may be the policy(s). Another may be the way in which pre-decision is conducted when identifying talent you’d like to mobilize. What happens during the process? Is there an onboarding communication plan in place? What happens in the first 90 days? These are areas that do not get the attention they deserve in order to protect both the financial and talent investment in across an organization.

______

Jill Heineck, CRP l Chief Relocation Officer
Phone: 877.550.RELO
jill@focusrelocationllc.com
www.FocusRelocationLLC.com
Twitter: @jheineck

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Why Do You Need a Communication Strategy?

Wednesday, November 2nd, 2011

 

By Cindy Miller

Cindy Miller is the director of communications for WOW! transformations. WOW! considers a communications strategy an essential first step for its clients. To learn more about our approach, click here.

 

“Let’s send out a press release.” “We should start a Facebook page.” “Do you think we should be on Twitter?”

These are all good ideas — perhaps.

Too many companies start with a to-do list when it comes to communicating its news and messages. But starting with tactics overlooks a critical step in corporate communications: the Communications Strategy.

Creating a strategy can raise the probability that what you’re saying is actually being heard by the right people. What do you want to say about your company? (Key messages) Who do you want to say it to? (Target audiences) How do they prefer to receive information? (Tactics)

A communications strategy — and a full-blown document explaining it — will benefit your company’s bottom line in numerous ways, including:

It will serve as a guiding document for all levels of company employees. Today, everybody in your company is your spokesperson. Consistent messaging must go beyond the executive level and be understood by virtually every employee.

It can link remote locations of your company. Global companies can’t rely on one department to manage a corporate message. A clear document outlining your communications strategy can drive communications around the world, and provide a baseline for adaptations for different cultures.

It can increase employee engagement. It’s no longer a world of “internal” and “external” communications, and for good reason. Smart companies know that employees are a critical target audience, and conveying key messages to them is an important way to increase their connection to the success of the business.

It can support your beyondboarding™ initiatives.  Today’s organizations are creating a company culture that nurtures employees from selection to onboarding and throughout their career.  Consistency in messaging is critical especially during the selection and onboarding processes as this is way to ensure you are getting the right talent, into the right company, for the right job.

To start before you have a strategy is time wasted. In today’s world of over-communication — think social media, community publications, traditional newspapers, magazines, industry publications, websites, intranets — you have to be strategic to be heard over the chatter.

 

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