If you´re interested in helping line management to immediately improve operations, gaining credibility, and keeping those pesky external consultants out of the building, here are some areas I guarantee can use your help as soon as you finish reading this:
1. Stop promotions based on merit in the last job. A great sales person does not a great sales manager make (or photographer a photo editor) and, in fact, it´s more probable that two jobs will be ruined. Help managers identify the behaviors and skills needed for the position, then develop reliable methods to find them among candidates.
2. End any evaluation and reward systems based on forced distributions. Ninety-five percent of the organization CAN be performing above expectations, but if the top 5%-the executives-are performing beneath expectations, everyone suffers.
3. End the use of non-valid test instruments, which have proliferated. You´re dealing with people´s careers here, and the fact that an unreliable test determine they are "Medium D" or "JJTN" should never be considered.
4. Develop tools which implement strategy. Most organizations´ strategies are not reflected in the daily, operational decision making. That´s because strategic goals aren´t translated into daily results and actions. If you do that, the place-and you-will shine.
5. Stop isolating aspects of the fabric of the organization-such as diversity-into silly, isolated training programs. Instead, build it into all the development that takes place every day in all disciplines.
6. Shop the business. Everyone becomes so insulated in organizational America that their perceptions are often unrelated to the client/customer experience. Don´t spend money on any issues that DO NOT influence the customer, product, service, or relationship.
7. Abandon any approach that doesn´t manifest itself in desired behavior change. And stop believing that there are "four levels of measurement." There is only one: performance improvement against specified goals.
8. Improve the writing and language skills of your co-workers, who are becoming illiterate. I don´t mean "communications strategies," or some abstruse approach. I mean, "improve their writing and language skills."
9. Cut down the number, frequency, and length of meetings. Audit them, suggest how to condense them and run them better, and measure the resultant productivity increases.
10. Push HR into the line functions. It does no one-especially you-any good in a silo trying to pose as a traffic cop.
Alan Weiss, Ph.D., is a regular contributor whose newest book is from Wiley: The Million Dollar ConsultingTM Toolkit. He runs The Million Dollar ConsultingTM College several times a year. Reach him at bentley2005gt@summitconsulting.com, and go to that web site for hundreds of free articles.
