Communication, Much More than what you Say

It is more important how you say it, than what you say.

Every Director, Manager and Supervisor must understand this statement to be an effective communicator and a trusted leader.

Don’t get me wrong, the message is important. However, the spoken words (the literal meaning) only account for 7% of the total message.  In face-to-face conversations, what we don’t say often screams the loudest. Very often, the tone of voice and our body language are combined to become the most powerful form of communication.  However, body language, which forms a large part of non-verbal communication, is often used on its own, and is thought to be one of the most “telling” modes of communication.

• Words (the literal meaning) account for 7% of the overall message
• Tone of voice accounts for 38% of the overall message
• Body Language accounts for 55% of the overall message

55% of our message is conveyed through body language alone.  This is a staggering number! How effective would your message be if you ignored 55% of the “words”? Do you believe you can successfully compel people to action if you disregard 93% of your message?

Learning the hard way…

As the COO of a manufacturing company, I was always on the run to the next meeting. I would very often use the travel time, walking through the facility as an opportunity to get my thoughts organized. Running through different statistics, customer needs or other potential constraints that are impacting our flow. I would arrive at gemba, organized and ready for a productive conversation. 

What I didn’t understand was how my body language was sending the wrong message. Although I was in a good mood, and my spoken words were almost always positive, they were in-congruent with my body language.  Walking through the plant, head down, not smiling, lost in thought, the perception was “Great, here comes Lance again, and he looks ticked off. “ Nothing could be further from the truth, but my body language was telling everyone that I was not engaging. 

One morning, at a production meeting, one of the employees asked me what was wrong. Totally confused, I asked what she was talking about; she said I looked like I just went 12 rounds with Mike Tyson. Wow! what an eye opener. After ensuring her that I was in a great mood and thanking her for having the courage to ask, I changed my behavior. From that day forward, every time I walked through the facility, my head was up, I was smiling, making eye contact and saying hello to everyone on my travels. I began to focus on body language just as much as spoken content and it made an enormous improvement in the effectiveness of the communication.

My advice is to truly understand the power of the unspoken word. Body language is an influential element in communication and is often overlooked or undervalued. Understanding that only 7% of our message is conveyed through the actual words, and focusing on tone and body language will allow you to become a much more influential leader.

5 Sure-fire Ways to Demotivate your Workforce.

One of the primary differences between a good leader and a great leader is in the area of motivation.  A good leader has the ability to motivate people to take action, while a great leader has the ability to make the other person happy about doing the thing that you suggest. 

In a previous article, I discussed several tips on how to motivate people. (http://leansixsigmaconsulting.blogspot.com/2016/05/4-tips-on-how-to-motivate-your-people.html) I received several very good comments and it spurred much discussion. However one particular comment stuck with me. It was in regards to how do you know if you are a “good motivator”. In my response, I started to list things not to do. I typically like to talk in a positive perspective but sometimes it is easier to relate to behaviors that don’t work.

Therefore, following are 5 sure-fire ways leaders can ensure that they demotivate their work force.

1.    Use your positional power as a manager in a way that shows you don’t respect your employees as people.  

Ignore employee’s suggestions for how to improve operations.  Don’t return their messages and never show up for a meeting on time. These might seem like small things today’s busy executive, but they scream “lack of respect” to your workforce.

2.   Take credit for your employees work.

 This is guaranteed way to disenfranchise your team.  Good managers are secure enough to give full credit where it’s due.

3.   Lose your temper

This behavior creates a very unappealing work environment.  Lost tempers are often followed by lost loyalty; after all it is difficult to trust the person yelling at you.

4.   Don’t stand up for your employees when under personal or organizational attack  

Your employees will want and expect you to defend them.  Teammates need to stand up for each other. This also includes the concept of; praise publicly and constructively criticize in private. If you don’t, they’ll remember it.

5.   Be emotionally stingy

People like praise.  They want to know they’re doing a good job and are valued.  Simple words of encouragement are easy, inexpensive and can be motivational.

Avoiding these pitfalls and emotional behaviors can help motivate your teams and will help differentiate yourself from being only good to becoming a great leader.

5 Simple Networking and/or Leadership Tips for the Shy

Earlier this week, I was discussing some techniques in increase networking effectiveness with an old school colleague. Jennifer is highly intelligent, well spoken and extremely articulate. She is also quite shy. As we discussed different tactics to increase her networking scope, it struck me that our conversation constantly shifted back and forth between tips for networking and tips for leadership. In fact, the more we discussed the more we discovered the points are interchangeable.

Following is a summary of the top 5 tips for Networking and/or Leadership for the shy.

1)   Be a good listener; encourage others to talk about themselves.

Being an active listener is one of the top skills of respected leaders.  Embrace your shy nature to listen before you talk. This technique also provides details and insights into what is important to the other person. Building your conversation on a framework of concepts and ideas that is important to the other person helps to quickly build a relationship and make the discussion seem more conversational rather than rigid.

2)   Get out of your comfort zone

Force yourself to participate in “small talk”, even if you don’t see an immediate advantage. Attend networking events sponsored by your local chamber of commerce or volunteer for community programs that will put you in situations where you need to talk in public or to people outside your normal sphere of colleagues. People will begin to see you as a leader both within and outside of your organization.

3)   Pre-event research

Be prepared. Shy people get nervous in situations they are not comfortable in. Have a mental list of current events, customer tid-bits or any other interesting facts to help break the ice or rescue a conversation if it starts to go sideways.  Doing pre-event research will increase your confidence level and help conversations flow better. Effective communication is a key attribute of all leaders, but nowhere does it say that you can’t do your homework ahead of time.

4)    Initiate an action

There is a limit to your networking capabilities and the ability to build trust in a group setting. Suggest meeting the person for a cup of coffee in an informal, less busy setting. Shy people tend to be much more relaxed one on one rather than in a large crowd. Remember step #1, so you have something to talk about.

5)   Exit strategy

Not every conversation, regardless of the preparation, goes as plan. In a networking event, you can always excuse yourself if they have lost interest or there doesn’t seem to be a connection. However, do so in a way that maintains professionalism and doesn’t give the impression that the other person was not important.

Shy people often avoid situations that take them out of their comfort zone; it increases stress causing them to typically under perform. Following these 5 simple tips you can successfully increase your sphere of influence in both the networking and leadership arenas.

4 Tips on How to Motivate Your People

Fundamental to being a good leader is the ability to win people’s cooperation. Motivation is about moving people to act in a way that achieves a specific and immediate goal. When you’re motivating people to do something they may not necessarily want to do, you have to offer them something they want in return.

By following these simple steps, business leaders can increase the level of motivation as well as create a culture where change is embraced and celebrated.

1.    Align individual economic interests with company performance.

Ensuring that the individual goals and interest are aligned with the corporate roadmap will allow for a better understanding of “Why” what you are asking to be accomplished is important. This tactic helps answer the financial WIFM (What‘s in it for Me) question. Incentive compensation programs that give employees a chance to benefit when a company prospers can boost motivation.

2. Take a genuine interest in the future path of an employee’s career 

One of the main drivers in why individuals decide to stay or leave a company is the relationship with their manager. Mentoring, coaching and training are easy ways to demonstrate the value you have for an employee. When employees believe that their managers are truly interested in their careers they are far more motivated.

3.  Listen

Actively and thoughtfully listening caries a lot of weight with your employees. There is nothing more frustrating and demotivating than to have all of your wonderful ideas for improvement ignored. Would you keep offering suggestions if you felt that your manager didn’t heave the respect to listen?

4. Do unto others as you would have done unto you.

The golden rule is called the golden rule for a reason. Respect your employees and the jobs they do. People are far more motivated if they believe that their manager and the organization they work for has a fundamental level of respect for their contributions.

Dale Carnegie captured the concept of employee motivation very succinctly in his famous quote “Arouse in the other person an eager want”.  People consent to help for their own reasons, not ours. If we make it clear how our ideas will benefit them, there is no limit to the cooperation we could receive.  By following these 4 guiding principles, you can successful motivate your employees and achieve your objectives.

Learn by Doing!

Tell me and I will forget,

Show me and I may remember,

Involve me and I’ll understand.”

This ancient Chinese proverb is as relevant today as it was during the height of the Ming dynasty over six hundred years ago. People learn in a variety of different manner but the retention rate of the material presented increases dramatically when you have to get up from behind the desk or conference table and actually get your hands on the process. After all, this is where the theoretical meets the practical.

The concept of experiential learning or learn-by-doing is not new. Around 350 BC, Aristotle wrote in the “Nichomachean Ethics "for the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them". Unfortunately for a concept that has been around for centuries, in my experience, I find most organizations ignoring this practical approach and settling on the classroom PowerPoint presentation scenario. 5 days and 1200 slides later, the students emerge from the darkened class room bleary eyed, bored to tears and no better prepared today than they were a week ago to attack and fix real problems. Sure they might have retained a couple knowledge tid-bits, if they weren’t texting under the table, but was the modest value-added gain worth 5 days?

Now compare that approach to a Boot Camp. Solving real world problems using the necessary and appropriate Lean & Six Sigma tools for your particular business case. Learn how to engage and involve everyone, not just a select few.  Define the scope, gain agreement, measure current state, determine and fix root cause, & implement sustainability measures. The trick is making this typically complicated process simple and fast. This process results in hundreds of improvements a year rather then 1 a quarter

If your interested in a high intensity, action filled day with several on-site follow ups tackling the issues that keep you up at night, join us on June 7th. (Click image above for registration details) Otherwise don’t be surprised with the normal less than 20% learning retention and the lack of speed and unresolved business issues that result.

No Capes!

Anyone familiar with the animated movie “The Incredibles” probably remembers the crotchety and opinionated little fashion designer to the superheroes, Edna Mode. Her one rule on the creation of superhero costumes is “No Capes!” She believed that they added a “madly fluttering distraction” and had potentially “lethal consequences”, sighting numerous examples where superhero’s capes where caught or snagged leading to disastrous results.

Does your company have a  “No Capes” rule?

If you are like most organizations, you have superheroes all over the place, flying in at the last moment to save the day.  It’s 4:40pm on a Friday and the product labeler just went down, does the process owner fix the problem? Probably not, send up the “Bat Signal” and the Dark Knight (engineer) shows up in the nick of time to save the day.  Hip, Hip, Hooray!

Almost every organization has some degree of a hero culture. The knowledgeable few that have the skills and experience to deal with the urgent matters to ensure product gets out the door and the customer is satisfied. Unfortunately, they often hoard vast amounts of tribal knowledge because they believe it gives them power. Individuals often feel a source of pride and ownership that the hero culture facilitates; being the problem solver, the fire fighter, the one that saves the day, not to mention the belief that this behavior makes them valuable and irreplaceable, i.e. job security.

Organizations that have a strong hero culture typically have a low organizational intelligence. The critical business knowledge is tied up with only a few key employees. Due to this silo’ed behavior, these experts, “heroes” move from fire to fire, never slowing down to explain or teach how they resolved the issue. As a result, people come to follow this behavior and sit around and wait for someone else to solve their problems. In addition, your heroes spend very little time on value-added work. Therefore, the company can only move as fast as their few superheroes and never benefit of leveraging their diversity.

As we know from the Toyota Production system, this practice is contradictory to the central pillar of “Respect for People”.  One way to help transform your culture is through the creation of self-directed work teams following the A3 process. Having the process owners lead the exercise, leveraging and capturing the knowledge of the hero in standard work helps increase the overall organizational intelligence. This also allows your hero’s to reduce the number of fires they fight, aligning them better with the strategic goals.

As Edna Mode so eloquently stated, Capes add a “madly fluttering distraction” and have potentially “lethal consequences” to your organizational growth. Implementing a “No Capes” rule helps transform traditional mindsets and facilitates a business process culture where all of your employees can contribute.

3 Must-Haves to Achieve Trust

In today’s business climate, trust is not just a nice-to-have, complimentary personal quality; it is a fundamental economic driver. Stephen Covey described in his book “The Speed of Trust”, how elevated trust levels increase speed and reduce cost in all aspects of a business including relationships, interactions, and transactions. Trust is the lubricating oil that facilitates, strengthens and eliminates the bureaucracy and non-value added activities that we encounter every day.

As leaders there are three fundamentals of trust that we must employ in order to achieve these benefits.

1.     Do what you say you’ll do.

Keeping your word is one of the easiest ways to build stronger relationships and breaking promises is the fastest way to erode trust. Following through with the agreed action speaks louder than any statement. It also provides a visible and tangible outcome that all can witness. “Doing what you say you’ll do” displays respect. Respect for people is a core pillar in the lean philosophy, and is vitally important in building trust. Think of the last time you trusted someone who broke their promise to you. 

2.   Actively Listen and Effectively Communicate.

Listen to the thoughts, feelings and suggestions of your employees, even if you don’t agree with them. Communicate openly and honestly without judging others. Make yourself vulnerable by letting employees know you need their help because you don't have all the answers. We gain more trust through the acknowledgement our own weaknesses. Use language that everyone understands, especially when speaking to different groups of people. “Talking to” rather than “talking at” illustrates that you acknowledge and appreciate the collective intellect of the group.

3.     Always Support your Troops.

When employees know they can depend on management's integrity, their trust can become limitless. Trust is a two way street. When a manager supports his/her team, especially on controversial matters, it demonstrates a level of respect that does not go unnoticed. This concept is also a key metric with regards to employee retention. When employees don’t feel that management “has their back”, they are far less likely to be an engaged, satisfied member of the organization and will likely be looking for alternative employment.

One of the most effective mechanisms to engage people and elevate the level of organizational trust is through the use of self-directed work teams. The creation of these A3 teams provides a foundation where management can demonstrate trust. Allowing the people that do the value-added work to fix their own processes has many benefits.

·      Demonstrates respect for their knowledge,

·      Creates a higher level of ownership,

·      Provides a more sustainable solution,

·      Constructs a better solution, since you are utilizing the company’s experts and

·      Builds trust

In the book “Everybody Matters”, Bob Chapman CEO of Barry-Wehmiller describes this concept as “Responsible Freedom”. Trusting the employee base to do make their lives and the lives of every member of the organization better. This concept of reduced control breaks from historical management styles and is difficult for some managers to accept but can achieve great results when done properly. However, this model is all predicated on a high level of organizational trust.

Team vs. Talent, a Cinderella story

March is a great time of year if you are a college basketball fan. The excitement and passion of the NCAA tournament, in my opinion, is unparalleled in collegiate athletics. Even if you don’t have a rooting interest or a home team you are pulling for, watching 64 schools battle for the national championship provides excellent entertainment.

One of the great storylines of the tournament every year is the emergence of the Cinderella stories, lower ranked teams that somehow, despite their lack of independent talent find a way to work effectively as a team and defeat much more talented athletes. This year was no different. In the first round, the 15^th seated Blue Raiders of Middle Tennessee State defeated the much heralded and much more individually talented number 2 ranked Spartans of Michigan State.

This was not just a one-time fluke. Several other lower ranked seeds also defeated higher ranked teams with arguably, better talent.

#13 Hawaii defeated #4 California

#11 Wichita St. defeated #6 Arizona

#12 Yale defeated #5 Baylor

#11 UNI defeated #6 Texas

#14 Stephen F. Austin defeated #3 West Virginia

#12 UALR defeated #5 Purdue

#11 Gonzaga defeated #6 Seton Hall

So how does this happen? One or two upsets might be a coincidence, a lucky bounce of the ball, improper tournament seating or a bad call by the referee, but several times a year, every year? There has to be more to it.

The simple answer, Team trumps Talent.

Often, instead of playing as a cohesive unit, teams often try to play 5 one-on-one basketball games at the same time. Even though they all had the same goal in mind (score more points than the opposing team) they each had their own strategy.  Five great athletes, each with their own strategy, were no match for five average ball players who played with one. Additionally, under the bright lights of the tournament and watchful eyes of NBA scouts, individual egos often emerge. Trying to showcase their unique talents for the next level, they break from the team construct and use the venue as an individual interview.

In basketball as in your company, talent is important. However most organizations are measured on results not aptitude. Potential is only useful if it is realized. In today’s business world, almost every operation is team based. Being the smartest (most talented) person is only helpful if you can effectively communicate and translate your knowledge, otherwise you a playing 1 on 5 basketball. The creation of highly functional teams allows for greater results. Leveraging the natural diversity and strengths of its membership provides greater creativity and insight. This in turn allows the team to achieve results much greater then the sum of their parts.

One of the easiest and most successful utilization of the team concept is using Lean A3 as a business strategy. Having highly functional A3 teams quickly, and accurately diagnose and solve complicated problems, dramatically increasing the effectiveness and sustainability. A3 teams help avoid personal ego’s from getting in the way through the consensus of a team strategy. Oh and by the why, A3 teams radically elevate your organizational intelligence, which in turns increases your overall talent level.

Imagine what you could accomplish when you elevate your organizational talent within a team first framework. It would probably look a lot like the University of Connecticut Lady Huskies basketball team. They haven’t lost a game in 2 years and are on pace to win their 4th national title in a row. The Lady Huskies are a gleaming example of what you can accomplish when you develop talent with a team first mentality.  Go Huskies!

Develop Leaders not Managers

The “flattening” of the globe, advances in technology and the advent of the web and social media have created new challenges to the conventional manufacturing organization. To remain relevant, your organizational structure needs to also adapt to this changing reality. The historically hierarchical management construct still has its merits but organizations that focus on Leadership rather then Management have a dramatic advantage, especially when it comes to creative thinking and innovative problem solving.

In a 2013 Harvard Business Review, Vineet Nayer very accurately summarized three main differences between managers and leaders.

1.    Leaders Create Value where Managers Count Value. 

Managers tend to only count value and in many cases actually reduce it. Requiring overly burdensome reporting distracts the employee and creates non-value added activity. Leaders focus on value creation, leading by example or enabling people to take greater ownership in projects.

2.    Circle of Influence rather than a Circle of Power

Leaders understand how to “check’ their ego or swallow their pride. They understand that the focus should be on leading people rather than managing the work. Being able to inspire behavior is much more powerful and sustainable than dictating results.

3.     Leading people vs. Managing work.

Management consists of controlling a group or a set of entities to accomplish a goal. Leadership refers to an individual’s ability to influence, motivate, and enable others to contribute toward organizational success. Influence and inspiration separate leaders from managers, not power and control.

Now, imagine if you had an entire workforce of Leaders rather than Managers? Envision what your company could you accomplish if every single person in your organization was encouraged to be creative, had the freedom to be innovative and drove value? This is the power of organizations that have adopted the Lean A3 philosophy as a business model. A3 develops Leaders! or as my friend Bill Greider calls them, “Zealots”.  Passionate, inspired individuals that are uncompromising in their pursuit of value, value that the customer is willing to pay for. A3 organizations like great leaders are not risk adverse; they embrace challenges and excel in problem solving. They are people and relationship centric with consultative and participative styles. A3 as a business model is an excellent way to foster an environment where leaders can emerge and thrive.

The world continues to rotate and with every revolution comes unavoidable change. Leaders understand and embrace this change. They have a vision and focus on the long-term goals. Organizations will also need to understand this reality and modify their historic management systems in order to remain relevant. A favorite quote of mine sums up this concept very eloquently.

"I suppose leadership at one time meant muscles; but today it means getting along with people." --Mahatma Gandhi

3 Tips for Successful Change Management

3 Tips for Successful Change Management

Resistance to change is one of the most common yet difficult concepts for business to overcome.  If you are like most people, there is comfort in the familiar. Being asked to adjust your approach, change your skill set or address a role modification forces us out of our comfort zone. This typically increases the level of anxiety and stress, which fortifies the human tendency to resistance change.

By following these general steps, business leaders can increase the speed of change as well as create a culture where change is embraced and celebrated.

1.     Convince your Employees that Change is Necessary

The first question most people will ask when faced with change is “Why?” If you are not able to provide a compelling reason, it will be insanely difficult to sustain any initiative. Remember, your people are smart! They have a vested interest in the company. If change is necessary for the business to grow and you explain the business case, they will understand. Proactively explaining the “Why” will also drastically reduce the level of fear. People fear change. Proactively and continuously explaining why the change is necessary will reinforce the message as well as soften the voice of the naysayers.

2.     Involve your Employees in the Decision

Study after study demonstrates that people respond much better to a pull than a push. Having change thrust upon you without any input creates fear and intensifies resistance. Sounds a lot like, “Taxation without Representation” to me. Involving your employees in the decision process demonstrates that their thoughts and opinions are truly important. After all, they are the people doing the value added work every day. It only makes sense to listen to your experts. Creating programs like proposal and problem solving A3’s are an excellent way to facilitate positive change within your organization while giving your employee base a mechanism and a forum to have their ideas heard. People are far more likely to embrace and sustain change if it was their idea in the first place.

3.   Reinforce and Celebrate the Change

Change is hard enough; however sustaining change is the real challenge.  One of the easiest ways to achieve this goal is to collect and share feedback every week or month. This level of visibility illustrates the importance of the program to the entire company and helps demonstrate a sense of urgency. It also provides a system of checks and balances. Using the feedback you can identify gaps and quickly addresses them. Celebrating all of the success, large and small, has an enormous positive influence on the organization moral. This positive encouragement keeps people involved and creative.

Death, public speaking and change are the three things that impart the greatest level of fear in most people. Since change is a necessary and vital part of any organization, lowering the anxiety level is critical. By following these three simple steps, you can avoid the major pitfalls while increasing your change management effectiveness.