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The High Performance Work Force
By Ryan Scholz
President, Leadership Strategies Associates
People can make a difference in the
profitability and success of an organization. This is
the conclusion reached in two recent books I have
read – Peak Performance by Jon Katzenbach and
Hidden Value by Charles A. O’Reilly and Jeffrey Pfeffer.
Katzenbach characterizes a high
performance workforce as follows:
- A large number (more than a third) of
employees consistently exceed the expectations of
their leaders and customers
- The average worker performs better than the
average competitor worker
- A strong emotional commitment to higher
standards and aspirations is reflected across the
workforce
- The collective performance of the workforce is
a competitive advantage and is extremely difficult to
copy
What then, is the secret to
developing a high performance workforce? The
answer is simple –
leadership. In sports, we see a new coach take
over a team with essentially the same players as the
year before, yet produce dramatically different
results. We can look close by to the University of
South Carolina and Lou Holtz to see a vivid example.
In business, as in sports, leadership that can have
dramatic impact on the performance of the team. I
have personally seen examples where two groups of
people from essentially the same population perform
dramatically different.
Although the answer is simple, the implementation is
difficult. The key to unleashing the potential of
people is to get the emotional commitment of the
workforce to the goals and needs of the
organization. This only happens when the personal
needs of employees is balanced with the needs of
the organization. It takes a lot of time and effort to
make the change necessary to achieve a cultural
change. It begins by developing an attitude within
the organization that people matter and can make a
difference.
Is your organization achieving all
that it can? If not, are you blaming the people or are
you looking at the leadership capability in the
organization? Could another “coach” achieve
different results?
The good news is that leadership
can be developed – it is not inherited. Anyone can
become a better leader.
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| Effective Communication |
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As we think about our everyday life we find most
problems occur because we have failed to
communicate clearly with someone. If we take a
moment to think about why, in almost every case,
we find that someone did not listen to what was
said. This holds true in sales as well as in our
personal lives.
If we are to have effective communication with
each person we talk with we must "Tune the world
out and the person in". This action allows us to build
rapport and trust much quicker with the person, to
whom we are talking. The more trust between you
and them, the more openly they will share
information. The rapport and trust you have will only
increase if you follow this simple action guide each
time you communicate with people.
The following are 10 do's and 10 don'ts that will
improve your listening skills and overall
communication.
Do...
- Be patient
- Make eye contact
- Take brief notes of key points
- Offer nonverbal and verbal encouragement
(facial expressions, head nodding, 'mm-hmms')
- Read between the lines for the emotional
message - wants, frustrations, etc.
- Allow for periods of silence
- Let the person speak as long as they want
- Ask clarifying questions at the end
- Summarize what's been covered
- Assume you haven't understood everything
correctly
Don't...
- Half-listen, filter or selectively listen
- Make assumptions about what clients mean
before they say something
- Jump to conclusions
- Be too eager to talk about your solution
- Agree too readily, without hearing the customer
out
- Interrupt
- Finish the client's sentences
- Daydream
- Take so many notes that you never look up
- Click your pen, tap your fingers or otherwise
distract the customer or yourself
Being courteous and attentive when you are
communicating with people always allows them to
share more detailed information and feel good about
doing so.
Practicing these tips and following an action plan
for twenty one to twenty eight days will make it a
habit for you. Once you do this automatically your
sales will increase and day-to-day communication
with everyone will improve.
Regardless of how well you know someone, show
them you really care, actively listen "Really Listen" to
what they say each time you talk to them.
Source: Billy Williams, President of People
Development Company, Silver City, NC.
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| Motivational Quotes |
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The quality of a person's
life is in direct proportion to their commitment to
excellence, regardless of their chosen field of
endeavor.
~Vincent T. Lombardi
Leadership has less to do
with position than it does with disposition.
~Unknown
The only real failure
comes when you stop trying.
~G.
Sorrell
People with goals succeed
because they know where they’re going.
~Earl Nightingale
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