Building a Strengths-Based Work Culture - Part one of two

By Betty Healey - award winning author

Employee engagement is the new ‘buzz’ word. My clients are both excited and puzzled by the notion. Their excitement stems from their belief that ‘it’s about time we had this conversation’; the puzzlement is rooted in ‘how do we do this’.

What does it take to be engaged?

My concern about this most recent trend is that, like other trends in the past, lips speak the words but true commitment does not follow. If an organization is serious regarding the idea of truly engaging their employees it extends beyond the employee engagement surveys into the actual day to day practices of the organization.

Engagement implies that employees want to show up at work every day. Why do they want to be there? Because they know they are making a difference, because they believe they are making a contribution to the success of the company and because they are engaging the best of who they are in what they do – their strengths, knowledge and experience.

With this in mind, how does an organization re-assure itself that this wealth of talent, those strengths and accrued wisdom and experience, are actively engaged and being tapped into, to the benefit of both the employee and the organization. More importantly, can an organization measure these same things and use this knowledge to match employees to positions within the organization where they will excel.

Examine your Practices

It goes without saying that an organization must be willing to challenge some of the more traditional practices they may have related to hiring employees or re-assigning individuals to new positions. Typically these decisions have been based on the CV, education, work experience, or seniority. The questions that often remain unanswered in matching employees to the work assignments which need to be filled are:

- What are you really good at?

- What do you want to gain from this work experience?

- What do you love to do?

- What are your strengths and talents?

Having said this, asking these questions to some employees may lead to a few blank stares as they are not, in my experience, questions that a lot of people consider. Too many people believe they have to accept what comes their way. The result is often a less than satisfactory one for both the organization and the employee as it leads to under-employment, a mismatch between strengths and job requirements, and a lack of true engagement.

Three Essential Steps

In coaching teams and organizations, I believe there are three essential steps in developing an engaged workforce.

First, as an organization, take the time to define the qualities and characteristics of your perfect employees. This does mean writing it down and being as specific as possible. Think beyond skills and consider attributes such as integrity, communication style, level of independence, attitude, what makes them tick as a person, and so on. Perfect, by the way, does not refer to perfection. It is an observation as to who is a perfect fit for your organization.

Second, be clear on your ‘WHY’, the compelling reason behind what you do as a company and how you do it. Add to this your organizational values, the guiding principles by which you chose to operate. Simon Sinek’s book demonstrates that the most successful companies engage employees and customers because they know who they are and why they do what they do. Your perfect employee connects with this why and is aligned with your organizational values.

Third, build your organization from strengths. This is a fundamental shift in how employees are selected for the positions they will occupy. Identify tools (suggestions follow) that allow you to measure the strengths and preferences of your employees. This is an essential learning opportunity for both the employee and you as an organization. For employees, it provides an important opportunity for seeing themselves and serves as a confidence and esteem boosting experience. Organizational research tells us that an employee who is confident in their skills, and has the opportunity to apply these same skills and continue learning, is engaged and productive.

Building from strengths also implies a new approach to performance management, one which keeps the strengths conversation front and center and where employees are challenged to utilize their strength to leverage their ongoing development. Conversations related to ‘identified weaknesses’ have no place in this model. It also implies coaching versus managing employees, supporting them by recognizing their strengths and how they are applied to the current work responsibilities, and challenging them to leverage their strengths to reach new levels of performance.

Building a Strengths Based Culture requires you as an organization to be clear regarding who you wish to employ, know you essential raison d’etre and core values, and build on the strengths of your resources, your employees.

Fighting the “Darth Vader” method to Staff Engagement

This recent advert from the UK’s largest chain of computer superstores (a M&C Saatchi production) suggests they have enrolled none other than our favourite Sith Lord from the Star Wars films to ensure the quality of their staff engagement. At Lumina Learning we take issues with Mr Vader’s “lightsabre diplomacy”.

Before resorting to galactic evil (I imagine looking for organisational development tools from the Dark Side to be highly dangerous and overpriced) why not try Lumina Spark as an effective, less fictional solution to motivate and inspire your staff?

Incidentally, “Lumina” is Latin for light, and I sincerely believe that personality models such as Lumina Spark are far more powerful than Darth Vader as organisational development tools- shedding light on who you are to bring self-understanding to yourself and the team.

If you want an inspired workforce without having to resort to the evils of the Dark Side, learn more about our powerful tools at www.luminalearning.com

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“Speed Reading” on my Lumina Travels

By SJ Han - Product Developer at Lumina Learning

I have just come back from my travels across Canada, which started in Montreal and ended in Vancouver with three weeks in between.  My agenda included chasing my favourite band, Pearl Jam, on their 20^th anniversary tour from gig to gig and more conventionally, getting some much needed fresh air to the brain, mind and soul.

Needless to say as I was hiking in the grandeur of the Rockies, this space I am now back to inhabit called “the office” felt very far away - well, as a matter of fact it was very far away, an Atlantic ocean away.  However, even as I ventured across this bewilderingly vast country - “to get away” - there remained a guy sitting in a chamber in my brain, busier than ever, speed-painting one Spark portrait after another.

With each human encounter, I picked up on the ebbs and flows of the individuals’ behaviour and energy. This was not only indicative of the fact that it was about time I got out of the office for a while but the way I was able to apply it every day on my distant travels speaks volumes for the resonating power of Lumina’s Spark model.

Travelling exposes you to such a rich variety of people, the ability to speed-read others is a very useful technique.  I found the inherently humanistic approach of the Lumina Spark framework really shone because:

1) It helped me embrace each person’s complexities and contradictions and develop a profound appreciation of people’s lives even in the most fleeting of encounters

2) It reminded me to value diversity - breaking me out of cycles of cynicism and stereotyping and keeping my mind open to all experiences

3) I could speed-read others quickly - people I met who possessed a lot of yellow seemed to glow with infectious energy, those with green washed over me like a warm tide with quiet intensity, those with red spurred me on with their combative purposefulness and drive, and blue… well they made sure I was always safe sharing their maps, laptops and timetables!

Lumina Spark is a powerful tool for organisational development, but I’d like to applaud it once more for the ways it can profoundly enrich your personal relationship with the world.

Lumina Spark - Thinking Outside of the Box

By Stewart Desson, Lumina Learning CEO

The AA Box

I had this image on my screen when my youngest son Joshua asked, “Is that Dr. Who’s box?”  

The Tardis, quite different to the AA Box

I explained to him that when daddy was a child (in the 1960s!) motorists aspired to have a key to the various “Automobile Association (AA) Boxes” up and down the UK – just in case they broke down and needed to ring for help.

“Why go in a box?  Why not use their iPhone?”   He innocently inquired. 

I explained that these AA boxes were useful in a bygone age, before technology gave us the iPhone.  How else could you make a call when stuck by the roadside, when there were no mobile phones?

That got me thinking – it’s a bit like the fad for personality typing that was also popular in the 1960s – putting people in metaphorical boxes and labelling them.  This seemed like the only way most organisations wanted to look at personality back then.  The trouble was, people felt stereotyped and pigeon holed.

People in Boxes

Just as our smart phones enable us to highly personalise our communications, we can now have the technology to look at our personalities in a highly personalised way – without the need to put people in boxes.  Methods that do not say you are “this” or “that”, but actually describe you as you really are.  In the last 200,000 years just shy of 7 billion human beings have walked on the planet – but there will never be another you.

The reality is that today we don’t need to be subjected to the humiliation of being typed; there is no need to utilise an out-dated methodology that insists you and your people must fit into a box.

I sincerely believe that personality models have always helped to shed light on who you are to bring true understanding to yourself and others.  Now it is possible, however, to use a model that really measures who you are and not who others want you to be.  As I get deep in to this topic I am shocked by how many of the popular models, publicised by some of the world's most respected businesses lack statistical “validity” or psychological integrity.  Sure, when the only thing that was around was a pay phone, then you can’t be criticised for wanting to get into a box, or encourage people to use them, but when there are now smart phones around that know where you are, why would you need to walk for miles, to use a box that someone may well have relieved themselves in?

Lumina Spark is much more smart phone than pay phone.  I created it because it's simple, effective and has deep integrity.  Many just like it because it makes sense and makes a difference to individuals and teams.

To find out more about thinking outside of the box, click here... 

- Stewart

How to increase the bottom line in Call Centres

By Nicole Martin - Our South African Partner


Imagine a Call Centre with ….

·         energised and motivated agents

·         satisfied and loyal customers

Resulting in…

·         reduced call handling time

·         reduced customer churn

·         increased sales and revenues

Call Centres have invested millions in their systems and processes with the hope of optimising performance of Call Centre agents. While this is critical, it is to no avail if they do not focus on the actual users of these systems, the agents. Research suggests that the competitive edge lies in the untapped emotional capability of agents.

Before the emotional capability can be developed, leading to quality customer service, there is an underlying factor that needs to be nurtured, and this is Attitude or Motivation. “Do I or don’t I want to turn it on today and in this very call?” Studies have found that a key predictor of agent success is Team Cohesion and Recognition.

Do the agents feel that they belong to a team?

Do the agents feel important to their organisation?

Are they recognised fairly for their performance and efforts?

If the answer to these questions is YES, then you can turn your attention to the emotional capability of agents.

So what does Emotional Capability mean in this context?  It means the ability to understand themselves, understand their customers, and then be able to build rapport effectively, changing their behaviour to meet their customers personality and need in that moment, on that call.

An organisation such as Lumina Learning develops this emotional capability in a dynamic way by using colour-based models, tools and assessments. Lumina has a simple 3 step process:

1   Understanding self –   The Lumina Spark Portrait identifies the agent’s personal communication style, strengths and weaknesses.

2.      Understanding the customer – Teaches the agent how to speed read and identify customer’s personality and unique communication needs in that moment.

3.      Building rapport – Teaches the agent how to communicate in the most effective way for that customer so that they can get the desired result and create customer satisfaction.

So what’s the ROI? Many! An agent, who successfully applies this skill, leads to decreased call time, increased customer satisfaction and increased revenues. In an inbound Call Centre they make the customer happier by resolving their query in a way that works best for the customer. The customer is loyal and continues to do business with the organisation. In an outbound Call Centre, sales and upselling increase as they respond to the customers’ sensitivity, mood and personality.

There is the additional benefit of increased agent satisfaction. Their job is now more fun, the calls are less ‘charged’ and they are benefiting emotionally and financially from better results! This of course leads to a decrease in Agent churn, which is an important and another cost saving spinoff.

So can Call Centre’s really afford not to motivate and develop their precious Agents?

WHAT can WE DO?

By Cees W.M. Nieboer - Strategic Lumina Learning Partner

In times like these where bigger organisations are laying people off and everybody is cautious about spending money the best solution seems to be making better use of our existing resources.

It is said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result. What I have learned from this is that sometimes changes are required in order to improve the current situation.

Limited availability of money and lower capacity of production lines are examples of factors hindering our ability to make a leap forwards. This combined with the bad news about the economy presented to us on a daily basis by the media doesn’t create a particularly motivating environment.

However, the advantage of being human and having the ability to apply certain filters and our own views on the world and the way we see other people (including our employees and co-workers), creates a huge opportunity! By making a shift that leads to putting objectivity and a scientifically solid approach as the basis for evaluating our untapped potential within the organisation we unleash forces that can transform our position.

Maybe this could be the breakthrough you and your shareholders have been desperately waiting for.

The question “How well do we know people around us?” is easily answered: We don’t know what they are really capable of because we only see a limited selection of their skills and traits when we are dealing with them.

If we could provide you with 24 – listed qualities and asked you to rate people around you …… how accurate would you be? If we added some more complexity to it and asked you also to indicate how the behaviour related to those qualities would change given changes in circumstances…. The outcome of that assessment would become even less accurate.

As a result organisations are often utilising the “known” qualities of people and neglecting the “hidden potential” of the cumulative Human Resource potential available to them.

Solutions are not always as complex as we think. The Lumina Spark Portrait discloses those qualities and even more traits and attributes we can deploy to restructure business processes and harness “under-utilised qualities” for our benefit and improvement of our bottom line results.

One of the nice side effects is that when individuals are allowed to use their strengths more freely, the motivation levels and the working atmosphere in organisation improves, with little additional effort.

Try it and take control of your own destiny in a way that isn’t dependant on changes in the world outside of you.

Good luck!

Japan - Teamwork and Leadership in the New Normal

By our friends in Japan

Those of us from overseas, working or doing business in Japan, are very aware of the differences in Japanese practices relating to teamwork and leadership when compared to our own. Frequently, foreign business expresses frustration with bureaucracy, lengthy decision-making and other features typical of Japanese companies.   However, with fundamental changes affecting the way we work -- what many are calling the ‘new normal’ – is it time to rethink our perspective on the Japanese model and ask what advantages it could offer to our organizations?

So what exactly is the ‘new normal’? Definitions vary, but in general it can probably be summarized as a change in traditional methods and models of business, brought about by myriad market changes over recent years. Globalization, emerging markets, social media and technology are examples.  The financial crisis, too, has highlighted the worst in traditional western business practices resulting in a consensus for change that advocates a more collaborative and responsible business model. This includes a focus on long term rather than short-term results and an increase in checks and processes to mitigate future risk. Changes in the economic environment and market challenges call for resilience and stoicism.

All these qualities may be seen in abundance in Japanese organizations and society. The collaborative style of Japanese leaders, the high commitment of teams to a common goal and long-term orientation are all well documented.  The dignified and proactive response of the Japanese people to the recent tsunami was a powerful example of calmness under intense pressure, and the ability to organize and act for the collective good under the most difficult circumstances.  

By complementing these best characteristics of Japanese business practice with qualities of flexibility, out-of-the-box thinking, and responsiveness in changing circumstances, we develop better models of teamwork and leadership that blends the best of all approaches.

At Lumina Japan we work with global organizations to recognise and fully utilise all team talents and contributions. Lumina Spark, the highly innovative and accurate psychometric resource, plays a central role in supporting individuals and teams to value their best strengths, and fully engage the diversity of traits and skills that each person brings to the group. In so doing, we support organizations in Japan to drive forward and meet the challenges of the new normal and a rapidly changing future.

Sparking Better Results on the Sports Field

By our Dutch Partners

What does it take to create success in sport? Is it the talent to burn, big picture thinking and dedication? What if you are a great sportsman with a lack of self-knowledge? Could you get the best out of yourself while being part of a team that changes every season?  In the Netherlands, more and more professional sport teams are beginning to discover the success of personality profiling to improve results. 

Let's highlight two sports: football and hockey. Lumina Learning is working in the Netherlands with two highly motivated and ambitious teams: NAC Breda (football) and Hockeyclub OZ (hockey). Two teams play in the highest league of their category of sports and both very ambitious and eager to learn. Both are clubs with young players, one where players earn a good salary, and one where players earn a small allowance, or nothing at all.

Working with young ambitious people, makes the learning and development process very interesting. How do you create a safe environment? How do you cut the learning process into pieces that captures their attention, but still keep the empowerment of sharing knowledge?  It is the law of “less is more” that we apply.

Another interesting element is working with different generations. The “young ones”, boys from 17 until 20 years old and the “oldies” between 20 and 30 years old. These are two different generations, not to mention the coach, trainers and staff.  The younger generation will not bow for the authority of  “oldies” just because they are older. This pragmatic generation demands respect, a good work life balance, and enthusiasm based on realistic goals. This presents a big problem, because the older members of the teams learned their leadership through experience and age, whether useful or not. Their leadership is based on authority in itself rather than what is best for the team in the circumstances.

What happens? The younger and older generations have difficulties connecting and that is where Lumina Spark starts to add value. We encouraged both teams to increase self knowledge and their understanding of others in their team through Lumina Spark. We are helping team members better connect on a personal level,  to understand and value the differences within the team and organise interventions on weighing the different values. 

The effect is greater understanding, more awareness, improved cooperation, less stress and better results for the teams involved. We are delighted to continue working with these professional sports people to transfer the accelerated results we deliver for businesses everyday  onto the sports field.

We wonder what improved results would look like for your team?