Feb 9th 10
Posted by admin in Leadership
At the age of 36, Michael Abrashoff was selected to become Commander of the USS Benfold – at the time, the most junior commanding officer in the Pacific Fleet. The immediate challenges that faced him were staggering: Exceptionally low morale with unacceptably high turnover. Few thought that this ship could improve. In many ways, the Benfold was actually an extreme example of the same problems facing many organizations today.
As the new head of his own command Michael only became more resolved. “In my induction ceremony, my predecessor left to cheers. The crew was actually clapping as he and his family departed. I knew then that command and control leadership was dead.”
“A lot of people do whatever it takes to secure the next promotion. All I ever wanted to do in the navy was to command a ship. I did not care if I ever got promoted again. And that attitude enabled me to do the right things for my people instead of doing the right things for my career. Along the way, it was my people that created the results that ensured my next promotion.”
The solution was to establish a system of beliefs that Michael calls GrassRoots Leadership – a process of replacing command and control with commitment and cohesion by engaging the hearts, minds, and loyalties of workers.
In his book, It’s Your Ship: Management Techniques from The Best Damn Ship in the Navy, Michael states that, “The most important thing that a captain can do is to see the ship through the eyes of the crew.”
To Michael, this meant interviewing every single person on his ship, from the most senior officer to the newest recruit — an experience that began to generate the most invaluable ideas, often from the most unexpected sources. For example, through one of these meetings Michael was able to address one of the most demoralizing roles of the crew: relentless chipping and painting had always been a standard task for a ship’s youngest sailors, the individuals that Michael most wanted to connect with. One of these sailors simply suggested replacing the rusting hardware with stainless-steel nuts and bolts.
“I took our credit card and bought the stainless steel hardware that day,” Michael commented. “Those guys didn’t pick up a paintbrush the rest of the time I was on board.” Today, the entire navy uses that process – a solution that began from GrassRoots efforts.
GrassRoots Leadership is a philosophy that empowers every individual to share the responsibility of achieving excellence. GrassRoots Leadership has as its core tenets:
• Lead by Example – GrassRoots Leaders know they must first change their own attitudes and behaviors before expecting their crew to change.
• Listen Aggressively – GrassRoots Leaders don’t simply listen, they hear what their people are telling them. They know that those on the front lines are the most familiar with how operations can be more effective.
• Communicate Purpose and Meaning – GrassRoots Leaders help their crew understand (collectively and individually) how their work contributes to the success of the overall mission, as well as understand how that work supports the personal goals they have for themselves.
• Create a Climate of Trust – GrassRoots Leaders trust and cultivate trust from their crew. Without trust, the barriers that prevent excellent performance will never be lowered.
• Look for Results, Not Salutes – GrassRoots Leaders maximize performance by making their people grow. They succeed only where their people succeed.
• Take Calculated Risks – GrassRoots Leaders know that taking prudent, calculated risks is instrumental in maximizing performance.
• Go Beyond Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) – GrassRoots Leaders look at standard operating procedure as a guideline, because SOP doesn’t change as rapidly as the environment and competition. Therefore, they foster a climate that encourages people to come up with better and more innovative ways to accomplish their mission.
• Strengthen Others/Build Up Your People – GrassRoots Leaders focus on making their people grow and creating an environment where everyone can win, thereby making the entire team stronger.
• Generate Unity – GrassRoots Leaders work to not only change undesirable behaviors but to alter the underlying attitudes. By working toward a mutual respect for everyone, they level the playing field, permitting everyone to perform at their highest level.
• Cultivate Quality of Life – GrassRoots Leaders actively integrate fun into the work experience. They want their crew to have as much fun from 9 to 5 as they do at home from 5 to 9; thereby, gaining the passion, enthusiasm and creativity that they usually lock in their car in the parking lot each morning.
By every measure, these principles were able to achieve breakthrough results. Personnel turnover decreased to an unprecedented 1%. The rate of military promotions tripled, and operating expenses were slashed by 25%. USS Benfold became regarded as the finest ship in the Pacific Fleet, winning the prestigious Spokane Trophy for having the highest degree of combat readiness.
His first book, It’s Your Ship, has sold over hundreds of thousands of copies and is a New York Times and Wall Street Journal Best Seller. While receiving accolades from such business-minded entities as Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, and others, perhaps the greatest testament to Michael’s leadership style is represented by one of his crew, who published the following review of It’s Your Ship on Amazon.com:
Reviewer: EW3 Holly (Davis) Simpson from Louisville, KY December 11, 2003
I am a plankowner* of the Benfold and admired Capt. Abrashoff’s leadership. His superior leadership brought the morale of our ship from just ordinary shipboard life to a ship that many in the fleet wanted to become a part of. Our ship was a show-piece and we were proud to carry out his orders.
What could have been a horribly desolate six months on deployment, including the holidays spent in the Gulf in 97-98, turned into a memorable experience for all, thanks to Capt. Abrashoff who even made UnRep a grand event! We learned from him that although we had a VERY important job to conduct, we were rewarded with pride in our accomplishments. Capt. Abrashoff was a very approachable Commanding Officer, an experience I had never encountered in the military and has been rare while employed with state government. He made an effort to see that his crew not only did their jobs exceptionally well, but that we enjoyed the festivities he provided for the ship while in port.
I have read his fantastic book, reliving all the memories of my Benfold life and have used his leadership knowledge to become a successful professional in the “civilian” world. To the readers who feel Capt. Abrashoff is “arrogant” in his leadership style–I think if you had as awesome a ship as the Benfold to be a part of, you would be extremely proud of it and the leadership that made it such a fine place to spend a few years of your life.
*a plankowner is a member of the crew of a ship when it’s first commissioned
Michael Abrashoff is originally from Altoona, Pennsylvania and is a 1982 graduate of the Naval Academy in Annapolis. He currently resides in Arlington, Virginia and has recently published his second book, Get Your Ship Together.
Terence R. Traut is the president of Entelechy, Inc., a company that helps organizations unlock the potential of their people through customized training programs in the areas of sales, management, customer service, and training. Terence can be reached at 603-424-1237 or ttraut@unlockit.com. Check out Entelechy’s website at www.unlockit.com.
Originally posted 2009-03-01 16:06:53. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
Feb 9th 10
Posted by admin in Management
That absence management is a key component of workforce management does not really need an explicit mention. However, planned and unplanned absence is a universal fact of work and many organizations might take it as something that cannot be avoided.
There are ways to minimize both absence and its impact. First, we need to look the factors that cause absence, particularly unplanned absence that is more disruptive to work.
Reasons for Absence
- SHORT-TERM SICKNESS: Short-term sickness is a major contributor to unplanned absence. An employee might call in sick, or produce some kind of certificate to prove the sickness
- LONG-TERM SICKNESS: This kind of absence is usually covered by a certificate
- UNAUTHORIZED ABSENCE OR PERSISTENT LATECOMING: The employee might just absent himself or herself without any excuse, or might be a habitual latecomer
- AUTHORIZED ABSENCE: Employees are entitled to different kinds of leave under the provisions of employment laws. These include annual vacations, maternity (and paternity) leave, educational leave, and so on. These kinds of absence can be scheduled and alternative work arrangements can be made through advance planning
Measuring Absence and its Cost
Many organizations do not take the trouble to find out the cost of employee absence, the reasons for the absence and ways of reducing its impact. With proper focus, absence is controllable to some extent, and the resultant benefits can be significant.
By accumulating absent hours (including late hours) and comparing it to total available hours during the period, we can calculate the percentage of time lost owing to absence. By comparing the percentage for different periods, the trend of absence can be monitored.
By department and section wise monitoring of the trend, it might even be possible to identify some of the reasons underlying high absenteeism. For example, poor working conditions or a bad manager or supervisor might be aggravating the problem in a department or section.
Absence can also be measured by individual workers. The number and length of absences of each employee during a 52-week period is noted. Problem employees can be identified and the reasons underlying their absence can be investigated.
Policies and Actions for Absence Management
Surveys have revealed that sickness is a major factor for absence. The studies also indicate that stress-related absence is increasing compared to earlier periods.
Absence management starts with clear policies for allowing employees to take time off due to sickness. The policies should meet the minimum requirements under the law, and can be more liberal to attract better employees.
The policies must be communicated clearly to employees. In particular, employees must be fully aware of the procedures for availing sick leave, such as whom to notify, when a doctor’s certificate or examination by company doctor is required and also any return-to-work interview requirements.
Implement systems to measure absence by departments/sections and by employee. Seeking the help of occupational health professionals to reduce the incidence sickness and stress can help reduce incidence of occupational health and injury problems.
Unacceptably high and persistent levels of absence need to be handled through disciplinary procedures.
Conclusion
Absence management is an important component of workforce management. Absences can occur owing to different factors. Managing absences start with the organization measuring the levels of absence and identifying the reasons for it. Once a clear picture is available, organizations would find it easier to tackle unacceptably high levels of absence.
Studies indicate that sickness and stress are major contributory factors to absence. These are unplanned absences and cause more disruption. We look at sickness absence in more detail in a separate article.
Originally posted 2009-03-20 15:46:08. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
Feb 9th 10
Posted by admin in Leadership
Do you claim to be a Leader in your business or your field of expertise?
I have noticed that many people claim to be Leaders, but I consider them Slackers instead. A Slacker is someone that basically likes to give instruction or direction, but takes no action on advancing themselves or their business.
Does this describe you, your up-line or someone else on your
Mastermind Team? Here are some clues that might help you out.
Leader: Praises his/her team and offers encouragement
Slacker: Quick to find fault and slow to give praise
Leader: Holds himself/herself to a higher standard that his/her team
Slacker: Has a high level of expectation for his/her team but doesn’t hold
himself/herself to that same standard
Leader: Leads by example and is a role model for his/her team
Slacker: Blends in with crowd and never steps up to take a leadership role
Leader: Has deep rooted belief in his/her business and leads new teammates
through the growth process (learning the business and facing obstacles)
Slacker: Convinces a person to join his/her team then pawns them off on someone
else or simply pushes them to the side (Referred to as “sign and drop”)
Which of these characteristics, best describes you and your teammates? Be honest with yourself.
Just remember, that a leader must lead and nourish others through the growth process. If he/she loses integrity and fails to take action, then this same failure mindset will ripple down to his/her teammates. A team will duplicate their leader and their leader’s actions.
Let me ask you one last time…Are you a Leader or a Slacker?
Find Your Why & Fly,
John Di Lemme
www.FindYourWhy.com
Originally posted 2009-02-04 15:55:32. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
Feb 9th 10
Posted by admin in Management
An appraisal is an official document given by an appraiser that estimates the replacement value and quality of an item. An appraiser makes a report after examination and detailed analysis of the property.
Types of Appraisals
Drive by Appraisals: This is an abbreviated appraisal that requires less data and inspection by the appraiser. The data is generally collected verbally or from records.
Professional Appraisals: Appraisals for personal property like estate tax, donation, sale of insurance, damage claims and equitable distribution.
Sustainability Appraisals: They are essential for national legislation that includes environmental, social and economic concerns.
Job Performance Appraisals: These appraisals are needed for performance rankings. They help in decision making regarding promotion, confirmation, transfer and salary fixing. These appraisals also give feedback regarding behavior of subordinates. This information helps in training, recognizing the skill of workers, their deficiencies and growth. These also play an important role in counseling subordinates. It also gives an insight into the behavior of employees.
The purposes of performance appraisals are:
· Creating and maintaining a satisfactory performance.
· Contributing to employee growth and development through training and management programs.
· Proper understanding of subordinates.
· Guidance to employees regarding jobs
· Facilitate fair compensation based on performance and interview techniques.
· Providing information regarding retrenchment.
Evaluating the work of individuals is a regular feature of companies. The appraisals made can be formally structured or an informal process. Both qualitative and quantitative aspects of job performance are evaluated during appraisals. Performance appraisal here means evaluating the amount of work and effort the individual has put in and is not evaluating the result. Performance appraisals give an insight into the employee’s weakness and strengths. Job evaluation is the amount of profit the organization is deriving by assigning the job and determines the range of pay while performance appraisal is evaluating how well the job is being done by the employee.
The content to be appraised has to be decided by a company before the program is approved. This is done on the basis of a job analysis. Appraisals help the employer to understand and improve his employee.
Originally posted 2009-01-28 15:53:49. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
Feb 9th 10
Posted by admin in Management
If you operate a mobile business and worry about taking credit card payments the old fashioned way, rest assured that a mobile merchant account can provide you with up-to-date technology that will give you the lowest retail rate and instant card feedback while in the field. You won’t have to worry that you might not learn that a customer’s credit card is rejected when you return to the office. Nor will you have to leave a statement and hope the customer remembers to send in a payment. Now you can apply for a mobile merchant account that will provide you with up-to-date wireless equipment that can provide confidence and security while you are processing payments on the road.
When you are ready to apply for a mobile merchant account, you will be happy to know that many companies can give you an answer the same day. As long as your company has a decent credit history and is able to pay monthly fees for account services, you should have no problem in getting approved for a merchant account. If you conduct business while on the road, for example, by delivering floral arrangements, making service calls, or providing transportation, you can collect credit card payments at the point of sale rather than waiting to send a bill or hoping the customer will have the correct amount of cash or pay with a check that won’t bounce. If you plan to attend a trade show, a conference, a convention, or a seminar where you will be selling products, you can take along a wireless credit card processor to make sure you get paid the same day. Wireless units come with or without printers. They will let you get the lower retail swiped rate, along with immediate authorization and sales confirmation, instead of paying the keyed-in rate if you call the credit card number into the office for processing.
Your mobile merchant account will help you save money and time. You can handle the credit card processing yourself instead of hiring accounting staff to send out bills and call for collections when checks bounce from the back. You can even get additional mobile equipment to support your business transactions while in transit, like a pager or an e-check processor. Most units are small and easy to transport in a vehicle of just about any size. They fit neatly on a table for indoor business purposes, too. No special training is required for operating them. Just read the instructions or talk to the account associate to learn how you can start accepting credit card payments quickly and easily.
The rates for utilizing a merchant account are not prohibitive. Plan to discuss the fees with your lender to be sure you understand the pricing for each type of service. Your credit card processor may be billed at so much per transaction, or you might be able to request a monthly percentage rate. Find out why so many business owners are using credit card processing equipment that can be obtained with the help of a mobile merchant account.
Originally posted 2009-04-01 15:43:19. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
