Tag Archives: Organizational Health

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Integrity Matters Because…

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Today I visited with a neighbor that was emphasizing how much the company her husband works for values integrity.

As she shared her thoughts I imagined the difference between the list of core values that hang on walls and collect dust, and those that are used to guide decisions.

She went on to share a story about a compound that the company had decided they would not continue to use for their expat’s housing because of extraordinary cost.

The first thing the company did was to decide that anyone that was already living there could stay.

  • (A choice that will cost the company a few extra dollars but prevents unnecessary stress on families. And keeps their workers more focused on their jobs.)

The second decision came when a new executive moved to the area and insisted on living in that compound.

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Is it a strategy or manipulation?

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Several years ago I worked for an organization that invited several key customers to a meeting that would last several days.

The company invested a great deal of time and resources in the event, flying in the customers, planning the event, and entertaining them.

When the invitation was sent, the company said they wanted to better understand their customers’ needs and brainstorm ways to better meet them.

After the customers arrived, many were frustrated to discover that the company wasn’t really seeking to understand their needs at a higher level.  Instead the company was just asking for a rubber stamp on an action plan that had already been created.

A few short months later I began working with someone that consistently emphasized that great leadership is strategy.

At first, I saw this person share a big vision, arm people with the tools and the support they needed and then get out of their way.

However, as time passed I began to realize that this person often worked relationships to avoid dealing with their own weaknesses and to drive a personal agenda.

And I started to wonder…

[Tweet “Is strategy just a politically correct word for manipulation, or is there a difference?”]

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DEEP Understanding Drives Change

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I cannot do all of the good the world needs but I can do all the good that I can do

Several years ago I sat in a room full of volunteers that were being trained to go into schools and work with children that were at risk of dropping out. One of our exercises was a simulation that was designed to help us better understand the day-to-day realities for their families.

  • We were divided up into small groups.
  • Each one of us was given a role to play.
  • Then we were given a real life problem that needed to be solved.
  • And a name of a place we needed to go to for help.

In the simulation I was the small child of a single mother that had no car.

  • “My mother” needed food and a job and childcare.

The simulation was timed to help us understand everything that she needed to accomplish in one day – just to bring home food. (Let alone finding a job or daycare.)

Each time we got off the simulated bus, we walked into a facility and stood in a long line. To eventually be re-directed to another place for services that was across town with different operating hours and another long line.

My job was to simulate how a child begins to act as a few hours becomes a day without food, without a nap, without play.

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Leadership means Ownership

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I have a friend that is getting frustrated with her new boss.

The new boss has made several mistakes that are impacting his employees. However instead of admitting what he doesn’t know, and owning his mistakes he either blames someone else, or acts like he doesn’t care.

My friend could understand and overlook the mistakes, however, the lack of ownership is causing the entire team to question the integrity of their new leader and eroding their trust.

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Putting the HUMAN back in Human Resources

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This is the third post in our series:  What does HR Really Stand For:  Human Resources or Human Remains?

Kevin KennemerAs I thought through this series, I reached out Kevin Kennemer because I knew that he had both the passion and the data to make the case that Great Workplaces enjoy a significant competitive advantage over their competition.  Kevin is a Great Workplace Advocate, and the founder of The People Group, a firm dedicated to transforming companies into winning workplaces. He works with CEO’s of small and medium sized businesses to create work environments built on trust, respect and dignity.  Kevin holds a Master’s Degree in Organizational Management.  This is what Kevin had to say: