Engagement matters. Gallup quantified this issue by studying employee engagement for 40-plus years. Some of their recent findings include: 34% of employees report active engagement in their jobs. 50% of employees report a lack of engagement in their jobs. 16% of employees report active disengagement. In world-class organizations, the ratio of engaged employees to actively … Read more
Engagement is the holy grail of productivity. We read articles and books and blog posts about the value of engaged employees and how much more productive they are. We hang on those Gallup statistics: 34% of employees are engaged in their work 13% of employees are actively disengaged in their work The remaining 53% are … Read more
We exceed service expectations. Each of our values needs to make us somehow distinctive, and it needs to have behaviors that we use internally, as well as with clients and partners. I had an internal debate on this one. It seems that quality customer service is a basic expectation. Making it a core value was … Read more
We obsessively over-communicate. Each of our values needs to make us distinctive, and it needs to have behaviors that we use internally, as well as with clients and partners. Let’s talk about one-word emails. A one-word email to avoid: “Thanks.” In a world of too many emails, this one-word response simply adds to the pile … Read more
We are accountable, responsive, and timely. Each of our values needs to make us somehow distinctive, and it needs to have behaviors that we use internally, as well as with clients and partners. One of my favorite questions to ask workplace teams is, “Around here, what is the expectation for email and voice mail response time?” … Read more
This week we begin a new, seven-part series on core values. In previous blog posts, I’ve written about the importance of core values to guide work internally and externally, but over the past nine years, I’ve held back on sharing the values of Group Dynamic. Now I’m setting them free. This week is an introduction, … Read more
Beth is a sixty-two-year-old grandmother of four, who’s looking forward to retirement. She’s worked in the banking industry for forty years and knows the ins and outs of how the company functions. She’s an executive who focuses a lot of her time and energy on business strategy and investments. Armando is new to the world … Read more
People who exchange perspectives tend to encourage dialogue around new ideas and information. In a dysfunctional situation, a leader may do the opposite; present information without room for discussion. I was part of a team once that had to select chaperones for an international youth trip. The chairman explained exactly how the selection had been made four years earlier. … Read more
Recently, I chaperoned a large group trip for a bunch of teenagers—over 300 of them. I had to keep track of about 35 of them myself, and punctuality was the most pressing issue of the trip. If any one person was late for the bus or the meeting point, it held up all 300. While … Read more
The Leader Campus with Mel Wildermuth has done it again! Another great interview with a leadership expert (no, not me. This time.) I’ve been a huge fan of Lee Cockerell and his book, Creating Magic, for some time. In fact, once, I designed a three-week class on leadership and Disney influence. It never happened, though … Read more