Engagement Remastered

Thanksgiving has come and gone. That time of year when family is so extremely important....

We gather our brood, put on our worst sweater and head over to Grandma's for the world's finest home cooking.... we have a few too many classes of wine, say what's really on our mind and storm off before the pumpkin pie is served.

We don't need a designated day to love our family, a certain day to bargain shop or a time to be told it is appropriate to give.

The best Thanksgiving I had in my life was with my friends at a Ben Folds Five concert, an entirely different state from my family... that doesn't mean I love my family any less, I simply don't need to be told how to love.

Let's apply this to Employee Engagement.

Is the sales rep who is at 300% of her quota but never completes her TPS reports less-engaged than the new hire with no revenue who is the first to turn in said reports?

Is the manager who's failing team loves him more-engaged than the top manager in the company (who no one can bare to talk to after hours)?

Is the young lady who loves programming with her headphones on less-engaged than the guy who gets up from his work space every 15 minutes to socialize?

People who are good at their job may be naturally skilled, seasoned, hard working, super-smart, and/or manipulative. A flawed personality and a big pay check make you an asshole but that doesn't devalue your contributions.

Some of the most delightful people I know suck at their job. Some of the most successful people I know are not the world's best conversationalists.

Recognition Cannot Be a Crutch
I know a programmatic manager who spends her allotted recognition budget to the penny every month. Each Friday she makes a point to block off 30 minutes in her outlook calendar to submit rewards and notes of recognition to her team. She does this to make up for the other 49.5 hours of the week that she abuses her staff. Her notes are not heart-felt but the rewards are redeemed as quickly as any other group.

The awards she affords are spent in spite of her leadership not because of it. 

If you ran a report she might appear to have the most-engaged team in the organization.

Passion is a Real Thing
There are people who love their job because they are allowed to split the office in the afternoon to pick up their kids. There are people who love their job because their manager takes an hour a week to help them start their own company. There are people who love their job because they are not called upon to attend happy hour with their team.

Reciprocity determines Culture! We don't all have to meet on the lawn to play football after work. Some times working for a company that trusts you to leave is all the engagement you need.

STOP Pretending Systematic Management Produces Results
Top revenue producers are not always the most litigious in submitting their expense reports.

At some point in our CRM driven, Big Data world we agreed to pretend that if a deal was written on a bar napkin, it didn't exist.

NEWSFLASH: tracking appointments, contacts and opportunities does not produce revenue....

Relationships Do!

That which you cannot measure is the secret sauce of your success.

If we could measure it, package it and produce you... you would!

In the end, you will fire those who are the best at meaningless tasks while the Lone Wolf defies the system with her every step closer to the bank.

~ Some have mature skill and wish to be left alone.
~ You can teach it but your audience needs to be trusted enough to apply it.
~ No one ever became CEO because their manager gave a passive speech about their ability.

Don't Forget to Remember!

Dave