10 Ways to Engage Your Workers -by CIO Insight

·       Hire leaders first, IT whiz kids second.Tech skills can be learned. Growing as a leader, however, will take longer if the basic human qualities aren't there.

I completely agree with this ,A leader with vision and motivator is needed to build the team. 

·         Recruit support from the three of 10 employees who are engaged.This way, they'll provide direction for remaining workers who are on the fence.

·         Get your managers to buy into change.Their teams will take a cue from the way they respond to unexpected shifts.

·         Dispense with generational stereotypes.All Gen Yers aren't over-entitled children. All Boomers aren't burnt-out employees attempting to hang on. Discover value within individuals.

·         Work with employees to enable them to set their own expectations.They'll have a better chance of succeeding if they've designed their own performance standards.

·         Present challenges as something to run toward, not from.Establish the "what's in it for them" factor to transform a potential headache into a positive point of focus.

   very true... but again it depends on Attitude of the person

·         Eliminate the whine fests ,Instead of letting them come to your office to complain about a project, require employees to present three possible solutions for every problem.  

    I see this most of the time. people who always complain but never gives solutions may not move ahead .

·         Document large victories.The best way to avoid re-inventing success is to document how your teams got it done the first time.

·         Celebrate even small victories.Minor wins among your teams need to be recognized to inspire them.

Very important to boost your Team moral and keep it going

·         Be fair.This doesn't mean everyone gets paid the same. It means reward systems are clearly defined and equitable - equal bonuses and benefits exist for meeting equal objectives.

goal setting

learning culture -part 2

I came across some good self check questioner to evaluate organization culture promotes/demotes learning.
This i got from different source ,not sure from where i picked this up.

Learning Culture Self-Audit
Pro-learning culture	Anti-learning culture
People at all levels ask questions and share stories about successes, failures, and what they have learned.	Managers share information on a need-to-know basis. People keep secrets and don’t describe how events really happened.
Everyone creates, keeps, and propagates stories of individuals who have improved their own processes.	Everyone believes they know what to do, and they proceed on this assumption.
People take at least some time to reflect on what has happened and what may happen.	Little time or attention is given to understanding lessons learned from projects.
People are treated as complex individuals.	People are treated like objects or resources without attention to their individuality.
Managers encourage continuous experimentation.	Employees proceed with work only when they feel certain of the outcome.
People are hired and promoted on the basis of their capacity for learning and adapting to new situations.	People are hired and promoted on the basis of their technical expertise as demonstrated by credentials.
Performance reviews include and pay attention to what people have learned.	Performance reviews focus almost exclusively on what people have done.
Senior managers participate in training programs designed for new or high-potential employees.	Senior managers appear only to “kick off” management training programs.
Senior managers are willing to explore their underlying values, assumptions, beliefs, and expectations.	Senior managers are defensive and unwilling to explore their underlying values, assumptions, beliefs, and expectations.
Conversations in management meetings constantly explore the values, assumptions, beliefs, and expectations underlying proposals and problems.	Conversations tend to move quickly to blaming and scapegoat with little attention to the process that led to a problem or how to avoid it in the future.
Customer feedback is solicited, actively examined, and included in the next operational or planning cycle.	Customer feedback is not solicited and is often ignored when it comes in over the transom.
Managers presume that energy comes in large part from learning and growing.	Managers presume that energy comes from “corporate success,” meaning profits and senior management bonuses.
Managers think about their learning quotient, that is, their interest in and capacity for learning new things, and the learning quotient of their employees.	Managers think that they know all they need to know and that their employees do not have the capacity to learn much.

learning - self virtue or can it be imparted?

On job learning. while discussing about learning management systems,one of my colleague stated that 'learning  should a self initiative . I agree to that to some extent ,but i believe that's part of organizations culture.
How to create that Learning organization? Is it needed? should organizations spend on learning and development of employees?   How do you make your team develop and how do you make your team to embrace learning.

Learning is a constant process. we learn everyday ,and that's how we grow. As a leaders you have to question your self ,how much time I'm spending on learning? Are we creating right environment for the team . Are we encouraging people who are constantly improving their skills. Many times mangers think ,ok this person is doing his job right,i don't see he requires any more training . Or some times they may get request for trainings which they feel will not be needed for that particular position that person is holding.

How to develop a Training strategy for your team?
I feel that we should focus training strategies on personal development plans + creating a meaning full alignment with your company's /projects interest.

1.Talk to people.. Higher management and  your team. Understand what  your business priorities are. Innovation , development of new products/services    , embracing new trends in industry are needed for every industry and this requires people with new /upgraded skills.
Talk to people to understand their personal development plans. Some employees may not be clear on what they want to be down the time. have mentors to guide them or guide them to explore and understand what their core strengths are ,how they can enhance them.

2.Sharing is good: organize informal trainings. Let people speak about their best practices they are following.
creating Technology focus groups ,and arranging group meet ups regularly ,sharing lessons learned will be beneficial . This will help in employees focusing and coming up with innovative solutions on common problems they are facing.

3.Arrange meet the business folks : I mean here real end users,who uses your products are services.This sounds crazy. But it works. Technology folks live in their silos. And sometimes business folks does not know that some small problems they are facing can be solved easily . allowing a interaction will work wonders.

4. Motivate: motivation is key. Motivate your team to learn. How can they be motivated? use awards /rewards/perks etc.  Recognize their efforts.

5.Get  time : Largely heard complaint is that 'we are interested,but you know what we don't have time' .Take a look at your team utilizations . See how many hours can be spent on training per quarter. Plan your training schedules accordingly . If it is not possible to spend at least few hours on training ,then it  must be time for you to do a risk assessment and planning.



Happy learning!
 

which job offer?

I had an interesting discussion with my cousine other day. He got an offer from a big indian MNC and also from a start up which visited their campus.. He has to choose one.  Obviously start-up offered more than MNC. Now what?

As a matter of fact that descision has to be taken based on his priorities. Salary should not be the only decision maker ,Yes it might have more wait-age .

If you have to decide i would suggest first list all your priorities like this

Things to consider	Company X	Company Y
Salary
Job description
Technologies I will be working on
Work culture
Benefits (like insurance for parents )
Career  progression in that organization is aligned to my aspirations
Work life balance
Management attitude
Learning culture in organization
Onsite/Job security
Team size

then order list based on your priorities  for example for me more than salary i would look for work culture in that organization ,my role or work ,work life balance . salary is a tricky part,you need to consider the benefits etc also. whats on paper may not be actual one you are going to take home. See how much is fixed and how much is variable. 'Fixed' is the only guarantee amount  ,variable pay out depends on lot of other factors. you only some % of 'Variable component' listed on offer.


sometimes you may not get all answers,but try out in different forums and blogs . Keep in mind that most of the forums /blogs express their personal opinion/experience. One person experience may be bitter and ones might be very delightful. So don't come to conclusions with just one comment or experience. Do your own research .All the best

Managing change

Some one rightly said that 'only thing thats constant is change'

Thats very true. we undergo lot of changes both professionally and personally at various time sin our life. Some times we await for some chages and some times they are unexpected. Comming to professional life
what do we consider most significant changes
1. Changing a Job
2. Changing your career
3.Change of your team (includes change of your DR'(Direct reportees)s or your RM'(Reporting managers)
4.Change in your responsibulity

so these types of changes will have dramatic and tramatic effect on us if we are not anticipating and now willing to change. We look at those changes emotionally and get scared . Its always tough to let go some thing to which we are very much attached. . Ask yourself following
1. How does this change impact me?

• Financially 
• emotionally
• personal life

2.What are my current priorites ?
3.How can i sustain my current priorities.
4.What if i change my priorities.do i have any other options?

Often we approach change emotionally .So we refuse to see other options. If you are going thru some change which you dislike, Give some time to your slef. Read inspiring books, be with inspiring people. Go for a walk and look at the change with a new perspective ,come out of that emotion ,managing change will not be though.