Outmaneuver the Old Guard

A true story...

Many years ago a young man was being blocked from moving ahead within his professional discipline by a committee of his peers.  The reviewing body had the authority to block his transition to the highest level of his profession, in effect, ending his career.  You see, this young man had struggled a bit, and the old guard was not interested in wasting anymore time on him.

However, one member of the committee saw something in his colleague that he felt was worth a second chance.  The challenge however, was that it was time to vote to move him ahead or to block his movement to the final level.  The vote was taken, the young man was not successful, and in most circumstances that would not only be the end of the story, but the end of the young man's career.  (By the way, he had completed a Master's Degree and was already working in his field at the time of the vote.)

As the group began to depart, the member of the committee who saw potential in the young man asked that he be allowed to speak.  Believing he caught the man in an error the  Chairman said "you can not open any further dialogue in this matter. Only those that opposed his promotion may be allowed to speak, and you clearly are in support of him."

Enter procedural maneuvering...the lone voice that supported this man asked that the register of votes be reviewed. Knowing he would lose, he voted against the man in the first round of voting to ensure he could take the floor and speak on his behalf. Absolute genius.

Not only did the procedural move capture the group's attention, it forced them to reconsider their position entirely.  Following an eloquent presentation on the man's behalf, the group passed him through on the second vote.

How About You
Who do you see around you that could use a second chance? Just because someone isn't a good fit in one area, doesn't mean they won't add value somewhere else in your organization.  Take the time to understand all of the options, and then stand up for someone who deserves your support. That's what leaders do.

I'd love to hear from you.

No Excuses.


pic courtesy of deborahshanetoolbox

I Hired A Recruiter - Update!

I've been searching for a new recruiter to join my team.  I took an unorthodox approach (imagine that?), wrote about it here, and quite honestly didn't know what to expect.  I summarized my search this way:

"I have a vacancy and I want a kick ass Recruiter who embraces social media to be part of my team."

Today I am fired up to tell you I achieved my goal...I hired a kick ass recruiter.  In fact, many of you know her, which makes this hire an absolute coup. 

Please welcome Jennifer Novak a.k.a. @NextJenHR to the Human Resources team at All Children's Hospital/Johns Hopkins Medicine.

Our terrific Recruitment Team is looking forward to Jennifer's energy, experience, and forward-thinking style as we continue to hack up HR here in the sunshine state.

Please welcome her as she transitions to our team!

As always, I'd love to hear from you.

No Excuses.


pic courtesy of @NextJenHR

Flames of Ignorance

I am troubled.

I  am troubled about the negativity that continues to be directed at our lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) friends. Yes, friends.  They live and work in our communities, organizations and neighborhoods. Add to it the bizarre decision by this organization and it seems we are openly attacking innocent people based simply on their sexual orientation. Since when is it okay in a civilized society to attack innocent people? I am aware that bigotry and ignorance exist, but it is disappointing to me that governments and organizations in the "modern" world would actually move ahead in such a mean-spirited way against other human beings. This my friends is totally unacceptable. 

One Nation Under God…Really?

To further complicate matters, some of these folks actually attempt to use religion, primarily Christianity, as the rationale for their position.  The reality is that the teachings of Christianity, other major faiths, and the tenets of human decency regardless of one’s faith perspective, are about as far away from these hate-inspired and homophobic attitudes as one could imagine. Families today are made up of many diverse situations, but that doesn't mean they aren't loving families. I wonder if Rick Santorum would refuse life-saving treatment from a gay physician who was married to another gay person?  I bet his perspective might shift just a bit in that moment, don't you?

Make A Choice

So with all this venom flying around us we are faced with quite a dilemma.  What does one do about all of this “unReligious” inspired hate?  Well, I for one am no longer comfortable sitting idly by and letting the racists and fear mongers control the message.  Leaders of people, ALL people, do not see color, or age, or orientation…they see people.  So the next time a person, or organization, or State allows a few voices to rally the masses to take shameful action in the name of “what’s right” remember these words from Martin Niemöller:

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn't a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

How About You

What are you going to do the next time you hear an innocent person being attacked simply because they are gay or lesbian?  Are you going to remain silent so as to avoid confrontation; or, will you step up and show everyone around you that you are a leader.  Do not allow yourself to become mesmerized by the flames of ignorance...while you’re watching someone else is feeling the burn.

I’d love to hear from you.

No Excuses.


pic courtesy of politicalmonkey2010

Ask Not What You Can Do For Yourself

We're heading into the annual stretch of time here in the States known as "the Holidays."  We start thinking about our families, our time away from work, our lists, our parties, our, our, our...  Hmm...


Why do I know so much about this "our" syndrome? Basically because I spend a whole lot of time each Holiday season perfecting my skills at accomplishing the list above.  


One New Thing
It's not that I am completely self-absorbed during this time of year, far from it.  But as I begin to see the television commercials, lights, and hear Christmas music on the radio, I'm trying to get out of the rut of being so focused on "my stuff."  So here's what I'm thinking...


What if each of us picked one new "good" thing to do over the next 45 days for someone else? This should be in addition to what we normally do. As I've been thinking about what I do each year there seems to be a certain sameness to my efforts.  I think it's time to change things up!


How About You
Regardless of your faith perspective, this time of year brings a different feel to life. Are you up for doing something special; or is the Egg Nog malaise already setting in?

I'd love to hear from you.


No Excuses.




pic courtesy of 123rf 

We All Need to Change

The concept of "change" has become such a dominant part of the massive reorganization underway with my team, that we don't even consider it something new.  It's just a natural part of our work lives as we push the practice of HR to the limit.  It's rewarding, scary, exciting, and frustrating all at the same time. Many of you may be experiencing various stages of change in your personal or professional lives too. The most important component of all of this controlled chaos, for me, is to keep my sense of humor.

Here's to "change."  Enjoy your Friday.

I'd love to hear from you.

No Excuses.

Quick to Judge

I've done it. I bet you have too. I'm not proud of it, but I'm willing to admit I stumbled and fell into the trap of labeling myself as "The Honorable." That's right, suddenly I anointed myself Judge, and had no qualms about being judgmental.

That's not good HR. That's not good leadership. That's just not good.

Icebergs Tell A Story

We all know about icebergs. We only see a small part of what makes them complete.  The same holds true for those around us.  We only see a small part of what makes them a whole person. So if we know we're starting from a deficit point of view and only have limited information about people, why in the world are we (read here "I") so quick to judge?  Is it because we want to solve problems quickly?  Is it because their behavior is so obviously off base that "we know" what should be done without even thinking? Or, is it that we've grown a bit too comfortable in our roles? Hmm, that last one stings a bit, doesn't it?

How About You
Are you willing to take a close look at your own style and ease off on the judgement throttle?  It's hard to do.  Important work is always hard to do.  Although you may feel a bit uncomfortable with this change, just imagine how your employees feel when you judge them...day after day after day...
 
I'd love to hear from you.
 
No Excuses.
 
 
pic courtesy of athropolis

Hunting Talent

Needed:  Experienced professionals interested in joining a world-class organization doing cutting-edge work.

Requirements:  Give up your  job, tenure, retirement accrual, vacation seniority, relationships with colleagues and overall standing in your current organization to start all over again.

Now that sounds like a great opportunity doesn’t it? But that's exactly what we're asking people to do in the reality of today’s world of hunting talent. Give up everything they’ve worked so hard to achieve in their organization and begin again with us.  That can be a tough sell.

Retaining Is Easier Than Hunting

One of the things I find interesting about Talent Acquisition is that so often leaders overestimate their own skill set and the environments they’ve created.  After all, the data  clearly indicates employees are much more inclined to leave ineffective leaders than they are to leave ineffective organizations. 

 

So if we’re facing a large number of vacancies shouldn’t we first take an objective view of our own leadership style (myself included) and its impact on our departments?  Let’s face it, if we can keep our employees, we don’t need to pay the overtime, push the remaining staff to cover open shifts, and wear ourselves out trying desperately to find high demand talent in a low supply world.

Hunt Your Team

Plenty has been written about paying attention to your employees whether it’s rounding, holding staff meetings or involving them in decision-making.  Lots and lots has been written.  Why do you think that is?  Because leaders still don’t do it.  That’s why. 

Plenty has also been written about evaluating your own performance as a leader so you can make a positive impact on the team.  Lots and lots has been written.  Why do you think that is?  Because leaders have so many blind spots to their own challenges that they use easy excuses to justify their poorly performing areas. 

Ever heard this one – “we’ve had a lot of turnover, but it’s been good turnover.”  When you have so much “good turnover” that you are now facing a major staffing crisis, it’s time to take a look in the mirror.

Hunt Yourself

Stepping up and taking responsibility for creating a difficult environment is not a weakness; in fact, it is one of the most courageous things a leader can do. If you’re worried that admitting you’re not perfect will hurt you consider this: you already have many eyes on you due to the situation you’re in.  Take action now to correct it versus leaning so hard on that “good turnover crutch.”  That tired approach just doesn’t work any more.

How About You

Have you fallen into the leadership excuse trap of blaming others for your current set of challenges?  Why?  No one is out to get you, actually there is a lot of support that can be rolled out….you just need to take that first step.

I’d love to hear from you.

No Excuses.


pics courtesy of sureshkumar and findyourcalm