Tough Times Test the True Character Not a week goes by that I am not asked in a media interview if companies are “going back” to their old ways now that the economy has slowed down and the intense war for talent has subsided. In other words, are they doing away with such things as hiring and referral bonuses, casual dress codes, employee playrooms, free food and all the other remnants of the good old days at Acme Widget Technologies? In the spirit of the yin/yang, the answer is a resounding: Yes and No! And, this is when a company’s true character is revealed. One of the key reasons I wrote “Get Weird! 101 Innovative Ways to Make Your Company a Great Place to Work” (AMACOM, New York), was to demonstrate to the “old school” that making work more fun, more creative and more productive was not a matter of money, and not something that required great effort. And, one thing I have learned in the past year is that there are essentially two different motivations for embracing and adopting the concepts in “Get Weird!” which have now become the litmus test of a company’s true character when the economic tides shift. Either way, it’s a conscious business decision with significant ramifications, and it’s important to know where your company stands. During periods of economic boom, some organizations start adopting more progressive human resource initiatives “purely” as a last-ditch recruitment and retention strategy in a desperate attempt to combat the war for talent. Their motivation has nothing to do with creating a more humanistic and benevolent workplace, but rather, is just another strategy to “woo” people into the fold. In other words, they have no choice. These are the organizations that are quickly reverting to their true nature (i.e., revealing their true character) now that they perceive that they are back in the driver’s seat in terms of labor supply and demand. They take a sigh of relief, and say “Well, we don’t have to worry about that stuff anymore! Let’s get back to business!” Then, there are those companies who have been embracing all these “so-called” progressive human resource initiatives long before the word dot-com ever appeared in our vernacular. Fun, non-techie workplaces like Southwest Airlines, innovative retailers like Nordstrom, powerfully effective customer service cultures like the Ritz-Carlton, etc. These companies were the benchmark for human resource innovation long before the boom, and will continue to be long after, and into the next one. And, they will come out the other end with the best talent available (perhaps yours), and will hold onto them. They are the long-term players. Some examples of enduring, human resource practices that will stand the test of time and economics are: Open Book Management: Allowing and encouraging employees to know everything they “want” to know about the organization, its direction, its challenges, its successes and allowing and encouraging their feedback and criticisms in a non-threatening, rewarding way. Recognizing that “creative dissatisfaction” with the status quo is the motivation to change and grow. Pay-for-Performance: Not spending more money, but allocating it differently. This is a form of legal discrimination that pays great benefits, i.e, discrimination based upon results. That which is observed, measured and rewarded gets done. True pay-for-performance creates “positive turnover” which means that you lose the losers and keep the winners. Progressive managers realize that equal is not always fair, especially to the high-performers in your organization. Fun With a Purpose:
Realizing and recognizing that work and fun need not be opposites nor
be incompatible. Again, we tend to associate fun workplaces with the
technology sector, but there are classic, enduring examples like Southwest
Airlines, Ben & Jerry’s, Disney and many others who have institutionalized
the synergy of fun and high-performance and have profited greatly from
it. The long-term players realize that fun is not a program; it is a
mindset; it is a culture. Crisis reveals true character! Companies that continue to concern themselves with the nature of work even when labor is in greater supply, are those that understand the value of the person and the value of creating and maintaining a “culture” of intrinsic fun, creativity, motivation and productivity. They also understand and realize the incredible return on investment of such a philosophy, and will be in business, making a profit for the long haul. Aside from revealing your organization’s character, what is the business justification for continuing with innovative workplace strategies during a period of economic retrenchment? It all goes back to the original “assumption” that the war for talent has subsided. Any manager, any human resources professional, any business owner, who operates under the assumption that the talent shortage is ever over is seriously mistaken, and will pay a serious price down the road. There is ALWAYS a talent shortage! Maybe not a “labor” shortage, but a talent shortage! If all you need is warm bodies, then you can quit reading this now, and go back to work. But, if your organization requires and values high-performing, high-level thinking, emotionally intelligent “talent” then the war is never over! The best and the brightest are not actively seeking you out. Tiger Woods does not have a resume. He is not posted on Monster.com. He is not looking for you. And even if he were, what would lure him to want to work for you? That is where your character and your culture become your competitive advantage. Unless you have a bottomless pit of money, these things really matter. In fact, even if you DO have a bottomless pit of money, these things matter! Another business justification for “keeping your character” during down times is that, particularly during periods of retrenchment, (layoffs, cutbacks, freezes, etc.) there is an increased need to concern yourself with the morale and motivation of those who are still there, (i.e., the survivors) without spending more money! That’s a tough challenge! It is automatically de-motivating and unsettling for people to witness the carnage of cutbacks all around them, so if you plan to stay in business, and expect your people to do more with less, and don’t want a mass exodus of the talent you have left, what choice do you have? It ain’t the money, honey! I find it depressingly amazing that “old school” business people do not see the obvious implications of this. Wouldn’t you think that, if nothing else, they would at least realize the self-serving economic benefits of just faking it even during bad times? Our only saving grace is that Darwin’s survival of the fittest theory shall prove itself true in the world of organizational behavior. On which side of the fence is your organization? Better yet, on which side of the fence are you? Although my altruistic nature would love to see all organizations and their managers adopting the concepts of “Get Weird!” for all the right reasons (i.e., because it is their true character; because they believe in it), I would settle for the business decision rationale. Either way, the advances we have made would be here to stay, and the workplace could continue to evolve into one of mutual benefit. About the Author |
