Theft of Time

The conversation began at a Christmas social gathering while chatting with another guest. We got on the subject of iPhone’s, personal technologies and the like. My new companion oversees an inbound call center operation and we were talking about her management challenges today.
As we chatted about the new personal technologies such as the new phones and how employees carry them to work, my new friend became more agitated. She began to share stories of employees and their apparent belief that time spent texting or tweeting or more was not in any conflict with their work duties. She discovered that one employee who they could never seem to locate was busy operating an art sales business over her cell phone and would retire to the women’s room whenever a customer called.

Time theft, such as with our employee art dealer on the side, costs American businesses hundreds of billions of dollars each year. This results from employees who “steal” from their employers by willfully wasting the time for which they are paid. Robert Half, the founder of one of the largest employee staffing and recruiting firms has conducted numerous surveys relative to time theft and concluded that the average employee “steals” approximately 4.5 hours per week from his employer or nearly six full workweeks per year. Employers could be losing more than 10% of their payroll through the following forms of time theft:
* Late arrival or early departure
* Taking longer lunch hours and breaks
* Requesting paid sick days for inappropriate reasons
* Slowing down the work pace to create overtime
* Excessive socializing and personal telephone calls
* Handling personal business while at work

Time theft is not confined to any one type of person or industry. It applies to "white collar" and "blue collar" employees in every type business, institution, profession and Mr. Half found that the majority of the executives surveyed state that permanent employees steal more time than temporary employees. Also, the greater the employee's seniority, the greater the chance that they will steal time from their employer. Office personnel steal more time than manufacturing employees, and employees under thirty years old tend to steal more time than older employees.

As in all areas of management, when concerned with the issue of productivity, the best method of loss prevention is an effective manager who knows what’s going on with each of the people they work with. When a good manager is on the job, there is no fear of long term employees who start their retirement long before they stop working.

Will you finish the year well?

Years ago, I attended an association meeting in sunny California. Many speakers inspired us with their stories. But one man's message still rings in my ears. "Whatever you decide to do, whatever you agree to do, whatever you embark upon doing... do it to the best of your ability!" He received a standing ovation that afternoon. The message had touched all of us. That evening, over dinner, there was an excitement as each person animatedly told of their plans for the coming year.

The years have come and gone since that speech. Yet, to this day, those words always come to my mind at the end of every calendar year. Some of us let up. Some of us take the foot off the gas pedal. Some of us slow down toward the finish line. A popular best-selling book teaches that "finishing the race and not wearing down at the finish line" is the only way to win. Sometimes we hear people in the winter years of their life say: "I wish I had...." or "I always wanted to..." Leonardo Da Vinci said, "Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do."

Run the race - finish well. I think this means, in every day life, some of the following:

• If I am a friend, then be a good one to the end!
• If I have good health, then protect and nurture it to the end!
• If I am surrounded by family, then gather together to the end!
• If I have a good job, then do the work "all the way"!
• If I don't have a job, then use all of my abilities to find one!
• If I am learning, then truly absorb all the lessons!

What happens when you don't finish well?

• You give up.
• You can't "get over" a past hurt.
• You leave things undone.
• You make a mess for someone else to clean up.
• You leave hard feelings behind.
• Your self-esteem slides downward.
• You do not focus on helping others.
• You "wear thin" on those around you.

It's possible you feel that you're in a tentative position right now. Can you finish strong in times like these? Yes! Yes, you can! In fact, a younger generation needs to see us model strength, perseverance, creativity, innovation, and hope - until times get a little easier. Don't quit before you're finished. Your and my legacies will be counted by all the things that we finish!

Dreaming is good. Planning is necessary. But finishing is best. Get results on the job. Build a marriage that demonstrates everlasting love and durability. Nurture business relationships that grow stronger through the years. Feed friendships so they outlive decades of trials and tribulations. Be an inspiration to those coming behind you! With just one life to live, live it fully and finish well!

Are corporate events appropriate in these economic times?

In December, many company employees took note of how the effect of the recession applied to them and their companies in the canceling or down-sizing of holiday parties. In the Business section of the Dallas Morning News, there was an article on how many local businesses of various sizes are still having company celebrations while cutting down on costs due to the current recession. The Star-Tribune of Minneapolis-St-Paul noted businesses there are cutting back on or canceling holiday events as well. Are you considering this option for your organization too? Do you still need a project celebration? Is a holiday or other annual department or corporate event preferred by your employees? What is the purpose of the gathering and will everyone understand if it is cancelled or expenditures for this purpose cut back upon? Should your event be for everyone no matter what their contribution or only those to be recognized for specific achievements? What are some alternatives you could offer as rewards and recognition other than a grand-scale night out or travel opportunity?

Remember when planning a recognition program that the 3 P’s of Rewards and Recognition are always important to its true success. The P’s mean rewards should be personal, proportional, and pleasurable. And recognition should be precise, principled, and prompt. Is an annual holiday or recognition event appropriate or should your organization being doing something more frequently? Please share with us what you do to provide celebrations and recognition in your organization as well as ideas for cutting costs on these activities for employee satisfaction.

Creating Engagement at Work

No, not the kind of engagement involving a ring and wedding, I’m referring to engagement of your team members.

Research by Curt Coffman, co-author of First Break All the Rules indicates that there are three Types of Engagement in the workforce:

• Engaged Employees: Productive in relationships, innovation, efficiency and impact. Represent 31% of workforce


• Not Engaged: Do just enough to get by; don’t feel their talents are being fully utilized, if offered options will leave the organization. Represent 40% of workforce


• Actively Disengaged: Are unhappy and act it out, unproductive and create a disruptive effect. Represent 29% of workforce

Take a minute and think about your workforce, would the percentages be the same? Have the percentages changed with the changing economy?

Times are challenging right now for just about all organizations. I truly believe that one way to improve our economic situation is to foster as much engagement at work as possible. If we increased the amount of engaged employees in the workforce we would have more folks thinking of innovative solutions to workplace challenges, they would be interested in building relationships with customers, and increasing efficiency. Wouldn’t your organization benefit from more of these folks?

People typically join organizations as engaged employees, excited about making a contribution. What could change someone from engaged to not engaged, or actively disengaged? Typically it is that they are disillusioned about something that is lacking in the workplace. Perhaps it is lack of information, feedback or simply that no one is listening to their ideas so they feel they aren’t valued.
The key to building engagement is your front line managers. Lately, I’ve heard a few managers say, “Who cares how we treat employees, where are they going to go in this economy? They should feel lucky to have a job right now.” The trouble with this thinking is that you will end up with a large group of employees in the Not Engaged category who will leave at the first opportunity when the economy improves. Once a negative, apathetic relationship has been created between a manager and his/her employees, it is very difficult to turn it around. People will remember how they are treated in good and bad times and will take this into consideration when facing a choice to leave your organization.

Since it is easier to build relationships instead of repairing them, what can managers do to build engagement? It starts with developing a relationship of open, trusting, communication. Managers need to get to know their team members, their strengths and likes and dislikes. Team members have to truly believe that their manager has faith in their abilities and will give them positive feedback when they do well and constructive feedback when things don’t go so well. If it is done in the spirit of “I want my team members to be the best they can be”, it will be appreciated as well as remembered.

Managers will need information on the importance of engagement and the benefits it brings to the workplace. After managers see the benefits, providing them with the tools such as communication, goal setting, listening, and feedback techniques will ensure success in creating a more engaged workforce.

The Human Side of Change: Asking Why

Do you ever ask yourself, "What am I doing?" It can be a hard question to answer. It’s not hard to answer from a cursory casual point of view. You might say, “I’m making a phone call, writing a letter, eating my lunch” or a thousand other at-the-moment answers. But what about the bigger things, like your job, your career development or your family interactions? What are you doing in these major arenas of your life?

Perhaps even more difficult to answer is, “why are you doing what you’re doing”? That’s the deeper question you may struggle to answer. The human side of change often begins by asking “WHY”.

Change, for an individual or a company usually starts with a dissatisfaction with the status quo. Occasionally a desire to maintain our very existence may be the motivating force behind change. When the norm becomes so distasteful, disgusting or points to our obvious destruction, we think seriously about change.

Faced with high blood pressure, chronic coughing and wheezing or a shortness of breath you may be ready to quit smoking. That can be a major life changing experience. Experiencing low back pain, high cholesterol and a potential heart attack could force your attention towards a serious diet and exercise program. Likewise, a large downsizing, chapter 13 bankruptcy or company closure may cause you to scramble toward reorganization or job hunting. But change of this magnitude is very difficult especially in a short time frame.

Asking the question ‘WHY’ on a daily basis may help you avoid these types of drastic and monumental changes. Change forced on you for your survival is difficult. Change that you make and design on a daily basis is always easier and more readily achieved. Changes that are smaller and more incremental in time spacing are usually easier and more efficient.

Ask yourself “why am I doing this, saying that, or believing in this way”. Honestly consider the answer both from a subjective and objective point of view. If the answer is inappropriate or inconsistent with your goals and objectives, consider the alternatives and make the needed change.

Individuals as well as companies who have the habit of asking ‘WHY’ promote change on an ongoing basis. They don’t just do, say or believe certain things because that’s the only way of doing, saying or believing. And they don’t automatically change just for the sake of changing. They ask ‘WHY’ and then examine the answers, thoroughly, thoughtfully and consistently. When change is warranted, they act. If not, they know WHY? Have you asked yourself, “What am I doing and WHY am I doing it. Why not?"

Do group solutions to your business problems just satisfice?

In the book Tools for Teams by Thompson, Aranda, and Robbins, satisfice is a dynamic term created by combining the words satisfy and sacrifice. It means that instead of exploring multiple alternatives to find the best solution in a meeting, you or one of your teams goes with the first idea that satisfies the most people in the meeting room. By doing so you and your teams risk sacrificing a better solution because everyone chooses not to explore new or more creative ideas because some conflict may result or perhaps everyone was in too much of a hurry to move onto something else. With satisficing, you and your teams may have to revisit the problem later because you did not find the best solution before going into action. Whenever possible, reduce or stop the rework by taking a little more time to: generate more ideas, use a problem solving process, and initiate a defined decision-making method other than voting or perceived consensus which may really result in an insufficient compromise.

NOTE: Another version of the term satisfice was coined by the economist Herbert Simon in his book Models of Bounded Rationality and Other Topics in Economics where his term combined the words satisfy and suffice.