Only Time Will Tell If You REALLY Believe That Employees Come First

There are only three agenda items at our executive meetings: People, sales, and profit.

In what order I asked? “That is the order,” was the response.

Everyone in the room looked on like an approving parent.

I belong to a group in Dubai that we called UAE HR Leaders Forum. It is a Whatsapp group that is just absolutely amazing.

We use the social media app to keep in touch throughout the week, pose questions, ask for assistance, etc. Every day there are numerous questions going back and forth about projects, vendor assistance and guidance?

The conversation above was a Chief HR Officer for a major retailer in the region describing how his leadership extols the virtue of their workforce. They are people driven and proud of it. Their thought is that their people come first. They know, and rightly so, that they will in turn take care of their customers.

Employees first, customers second

Are You Making Sure To Change Your Talent Along With Your Strategy?

I have never had strategy and talent explained that way. I am a professor at a Business School here in Dubai and I teach strategy. We should put something together.

At the end of one of my speeches, I was approached by this professor who gave me his background: Ph.D Business, Dean of the Business School, and strategy and logistics expert. I was impressed, to say the least

The title of my presentation was Strategy and Talent: The Key to Organizational Success. As an instructor for the Human Capital Institute, our version of Strategic HR centers on that slide. Strategy changes and the talent equation changes.

Sounds simple enough

The Tide Is Turning – The Old Ways Of Managing A Workforce Are Evolving

These were recent headlines that came across my news feed:

Would You Give Staff a Three-Day Weekend? Global Retailer Uniqlo is Giving it a Go

Facebook Co-founder Calls Out Tech Industry for Lack of Work-Life Balance

How Working Long Hours is Hitting Your Health

How Companies Are Changing Old Ways to Attract Young Workers

In Big Move, Accenture Will Get Rid of Annual Performance Reviews and Rankings

These were headlines that made me go, “Yes, Baby!”

I speak at a lot of colleges in the Middle East, specifically to the HR programs, and one thing I tell them is that the workforce needs you. Your generation is going to bring some organizations out of their industrial stupor.

Begrudgingly, some will make the move and some will keep their heads buried in the sands. The ones that take the step and enter into a new world where every rule and workplace policy is reviewed will stumble at times — but in the end they will win.

The tide is turning

Better Engagement? It Trickles Down From Managers to Your Employees

I do not care whether anyone here likes me or not.

Please do not come to me with this, I should be the last person that you come to with questions, go figure it out.

Now I just do my job and what is required. Nothing more.

This one-sided conversation was sent to me the other morning from one of my mentees who is struggling with a bad boss.  She loves her job, but the manager dynamic is fragile, to say the least.

The conversation made me remember a terrific white paper that I recently read — State of the American Manager — produced by Gallup. This is a must read for any organization that struggles with engagement.

One of the most glaring statistic was this:

Managers account for at least 70 percent of the variance in employee engagement scores across business units.”

The drill sergeant disguised as manager