I've Been Thinking...

That 2008 is the year to jump ahead by leading instead of following. And that takes a truly extraordinary team. So first things first. With a new year comes a new approach to finding, hiring and retaining the best, level A, star-performing employees.

You know the best are out there – working for others and probably working in the wrong job. You have the right job for the right talent. So how do you get the process going?

Before we get going, please commit to this New Year’s resolution:

Never say the word “employee” again. Instead, commit to using the phrase “RIGHT employee” when referring to an employee.

“One size fits all” or “any employee will do” employee does not make high performing companies; the RIGHT employee is the focus for 2008. Treat employees as assets in 2008, not expenses. Invest in them, understand them, activate them, treasure them. To get the RIGHT employee in 2008, commit to the following:

Define the talents that belong in the role you are looking for. This means what natural thinking abilities have to be in place for this employee to be successful in this (particular) job. Consider this: we are in an intellectual economy…our employees are paid based on their ability to think their way through the situations that they encounter. So if we can hire an employee that thinks in the way of the job, they will naturally be better in the role and will generally stay longer because they feel competent and engaged. Once you know this by job, you will always be clear about what you need and will naturally do a better job of bringing in the RIGHT employees.
Talents can be defined in a number of ways but my favorite is to use the list that you can find in the book by Tom Rath, StrengthsFinder 2.0. It lists 34 talents – review them and identify 5 talents that belong in the role for which you are hiring. Now you know what you are looking for.
Meet with your team and explain what you are looking for. Brainstorm places where you will find someone who thinks in the way you need (has the right talents). Make all of your team “recruiters” by arming them with business cards that say “talent recruiter” or “talent scout.” Make them responsible to notice employees who do a great job when they are out shopping, dining or dealing with other businesses. Besides watching for great employees, have them watch for great things other businesses do and share them with the team. This engages employees and makes them owners in the success of the company by finding high performing candidates.
Once you locate what you feel to be the RIGHT candidates, ask talent based questions – see the list of great talent based questions. Ask questions that prove or disprove whether the candidate has the right natural thinking. If so, great – you have a match. If not, don’t hire them; they are not the RIGHT employee.

Commit to hiring the RIGHT employee in 2008. Invest the time to define what you need, locate the talent and then ask the right power questions. It takes time to find the RIGHT employee – but like buying a house or a car, the only way to choose wisely is to do the right amount of work up front. It assures a better fit and a more productive employee. Contact us for more information about talent strategies, job sculpting and a dynamic career conversation process.

Look – something new. Blogging is great – it is a chance to share opinions and get updates on thinking. But chat isn’t always productive. So instead, we have invented BLOGucation – daily power learning. As you have seen, Humanetrics LLC is all about maximizing performance – personal and professional. And this happens in today’s intellectual environment by learning, thinking and growing.

Not all learning has to come from giant textbooks. In today’s quick byte-paced world, short and powerful is better than long and complex. So BLOGucation is your center for short, high impact power learning. Our focus is always on performance management and extraordinary service. So check back each day for something new, something powerful and something meaningful. Dialog with us; share your great ideas as we turn the BLOGucation section into an idea center, shared with others…for FREE. We all learn from each other – and now high powered learning has a permanent address.

Your Success Formula

When we went to bed last night, the world changed; yesterday’s approach to work and life may already be outdated. As 2008 begins, let’s commit to plan our days by spending time defining our success plan and then living our plan to achieve it. Let’s commit to staying informed and modifying our plan as life around us changes. Let’s commit to learning and growing since we are in an intellectual age and our success is in what we know and how we use it.

To help you succeed, Humanetrics introduces the Success Formula - your way to clearly define what you commit to doing in 2008, learning how to be great and then building a plan to achieve it.

To get started go to www.humanetricsllc.com and click on Success Formula. Print the Success Formula worksheet and follow the instructions on-line or below to create your personal success plan.

Step 1: Get connected by defining your vision of success

The best way to improve your performance (and the performance of others if you manage people) is to clearly define your expectations. What will make 2008 successful for you – personally and professionally? Review this with your employees or your family. Encourage others to complete it as well. Complete the top section with as much detail as you can provide. Now you are clear about your definition of success for 2008.

Step 2: Get informed.

Once you are clear about what you want, the next step is to get connected to your world. So much changes in the world – each day. A plan that is not based on today’s world can not be successfully implemented. That means that your job today is to read and learn – articles, blogs, quotes, newsletters. Use the Wall Street Journal, MSNBC, the Kiplinger Letter, periodicals about your specialty, Seth’ Blog and all the resources we put on http://www.humanetricsllc.com for you- for free. Find 5 meaningful sources of information and commit to reading or listening to them daily or weekly. The more you actively participate in your world, the more information you will have to understand how to achieve your definition of success.

Step 3: Implement what you know – create a plan

Now we know what we want and we understand our world. It is time to start to put a plan together. So based on your goals and what you know, create five action items – things you will do and when you complete them, they will advance you on the process of achieving your goals. Each of your action items should be measurable and specific – that way you will always be able to assess whether you have achieved them or not. Now you have a plan that will direct your success – it makes you an owner of your performance.

Look for help

Sometimes our worlds are complex and we need the help of specialists or experts. Depending on your action items, start to locate help. Check our site to see our commitment to extraordinary employee performance and customer service. Review our programs to see if they should be the next step in the implementation of your plan. Our commitment is to STAND OUT and the EXTRAordinary. We help companies and individuals who build plans that focus on extraordinary performance and growth and strong personal development. We are available to guide your process to a higher level. If that is right for you, click the “I’m Ready” button on the site to send us a message when you need our help. Until then, do great work, learn, share and perform in a big way. Commit to an extraordinary 2008 – personally and professionally.

Our best wishes for a STAND OUT 2008.