As mentioned in a couple of earlier blog posts, making sure that the references check out and information on Resumes/c.v.'s is accurate before hiring someone, is critical and essential. This impacts the corporation on multiple levels:
1) Making sure that there is good "Job Fit" by contacting people who have worked with the individual before and how they have performed, and in "assessing" behavioral traits that fit with the position's benchmark, based on top performers.
2) Ensuring that the Ethics and Moral values of the person are consistent with the company's values, as this person's interaction with all levels of the company's personnel will have some effect, regardless of position within the company, from sanitary engineer on up.
3) Finding a replacement can take time and interrupts strategies or activities being handled by the individual in question and can set back the initiatives, by months to even years.
4) It affects the morale of of the company and personnel. The higher the position of the person or people in question, the broader the impact and negative affect on the company. In this most recent case at Yahoo!, which has been struggling to compete against Google, it casts ongoing credibility issues for the company, both internally and with shareholders. Morale and Credibility Issues follow Yahoo!
And:
5) In this case, it has affected not only the career of the individual who embellished his credentials, but also, regrettably another Board member.
Have all the shoes fallen yet? Only time will tell! There should be policy changes put into place to prevent a occurrence, that is clear.
Scott Thompson CEO of Yahoo! Resigns
Patti Hart of Yahoo! Resigns Over CEO's botched Academic Records
Showing posts with label Standards. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Standards. Show all posts
Monday, May 14, 2012
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Interactive Display comparison of top 20 Multinationals vs top 10 Companies in each Asian Country
Below is a link to a very interesting comparison of top Asian companies vs top 20 MultiNational copmanies operating in Asia. It is interactive so you can select Multinational vs different country's top 10. Or you can compare the top 10 in one country vs another country.
Enjoy the analysis. CEOs and Senior Executives in particular may find this of interest.
Compare countries and industry groups, and measure local companies against the top 20 multinational companies operating in Asia-WSJ
Enjoy the analysis. CEOs and Senior Executives in particular may find this of interest.
Compare countries and industry groups, and measure local companies against the top 20 multinational companies operating in Asia-WSJ
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
"Gamification" - Mixing Work and Play?
A recent article in the WSJ talks about introducing "gamification" into the workplace. This could be interesting and effective, but like anything in the corporate world, it needs to be applied properly and uniformly. Otherwise, it can be misused and communicate the wrong message into the company, create friction internally, or deliver the wrong result(s).
In the early years of KPA/KRA's many times the metrics used resulted in a counter-productive results. It is suspected that they are still being misapplied.
So it is suggested that care be used in this possibly interesting process. On the surface, this technique should help to gain "engagement", and build stronger and more cohesive Teams. It might be used more with Front Line and entry level positions. It doubtful if this will significantly affect long-term motivation and retention. Training in it's proper use and establishment of standards might be needed.
It's beginning to seem that people need to be constantly entertained to be engaged, both in our education systems and now at work. While it may be that this is the case, what happens to those companies and people who can't marshal the skills and techniques? It is doubtful that everyone will want "gamification" applied to everything in their lives.
This technique can possibly lead to "burnout", as many sports professionals, in particular, find out. Being on too high a "charge," for too long, may not be life healthy. There is a need for work/life balance. A time to refresh/recharge and have some "downtime."
In order to speed the reader's time, the article is pasted below for your review with a link at the end. It is up to the reader, CEO or senior manager, HR department and company, whether to pilot or employ this method or not.
Striving to make everyday business tasks more engaging, a growing number of firms, including International Business Machines Corp. and consulting firm Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Ltd., are incorporating elements of videogames into the workplace.
They're deploying reward and competitive tactics commonly found in the gaming world to make tasks such as management training, data entry and brainstorming seem less like work. Employees receive points or badges for completing jobs or meeting time limits for assignments, for example. Companies also may use leaderboards, which let players view one another's scores, to encourage friendly competition and motivate performance, experts say.
This "gamification" of the workplace, or "enterprise gamification" in tech-industry parlance, is a fast-growing business. Companies have used digital games for a number of years to help market products to consumers and build brand loyalty. What's emerging is using games to motivate their own employees.
Tech-industry research firm Gartner estimates that by 2014, some 70% of large companies will use the techniques for at least one business process. Market researcher M2 Research estimates revenue from gamification software, consulting and marketing will reach $938 million by 2014 from less than $100 million this year.
Some companies build their own games in-house. Others rely on outside firms such as San Jose, Calif.-based Bunchball Inc. and Menlo Park, Calif.-based Badgeville Inc. to "gamify" various business processes including employee training.
Business software company SAP AG employs a variety of games, including one modeled after a golf game that assigns sales leads and environmental challenges that award points for tasks like carpooling, says Mario Herger, senior innovation strategist, at SAP in Palo Alto, Calif.
SAP even turned its gamification efforts into a game, holding a series of "Gamification Cups" to generate ideas for turning various business processes into games. One recent winner turned the traditionally boring process of invoicing into a competition.
IBM uses a variety of game-like strategies throughout much of the company including video games in which users can help make a virtual city more efficient or simulate various business scenarios, says Chuck Hamilton, IBM's virtual learning leader.
With some 400,000 employees, roughly 40% of whom work from home or on the road, gaming is a way to help colleagues connect and stay engaged, explains Mr. Hamilton.
And global consulting firm Deloitte employs digital games for its Deloitte Leadership Academy, an executive education program it uses to train clients and its own consultants.
Users receive virtual badges after completing training courses and "unlock" more complex training courses when basic levels are completed, says Frank Farrall, a partner with Deloitte in Melbourne, Australia, where its gamification initiative began last year. He says that the tools are still too new to gauge their effectiveness, but that they seem to be catching on among consultants.
"The reason why gamification is so hot is that most people's jobs are really freaking boring," says Gabe Zichermann, organizer of the "Gamification Summit" conference held last month in New York.
So far, the tactic has proved effective. A study last year by Traci Sitzmann, an assistant professor of management at the University of Colorado Denver Business School found that employees trained on video games learned more factual information, attained a higher skill level and retained information longer than workers who learned in less interactive environments.
LiveOps Inc., which runs virtual call centers, uses gaming to help improve the performance of its 20,000 call agents—independent contractors located all over the U.S. Starting last year, the company began awarding agents with virtual badges and points for tasks such as keeping calls brief and closing sales. Leaderboards allow the agents to compare their achievements to others.
Since the gamification system was implemented, some agents have reduced call time by 15%, and sales have improved by between 8% and 12% among certain sales agents, says Sanjay Mathur, vice president of product management at LiveOps, Santa Clara, Calif.
Still, gaming experts say there are some pitfalls for companies when implementing games internally. Companies need to make sure that the games are designed to actually reward desired behaviors and are not just doling out meaningless awards or badges.
Firms also need to make sure that friendly competition doesn't get out of hand, fostering animosity among employees, says Byron Reeves, a professor of communication at Stanford University and a co-founder of Seriosity Inc., a firm that helps companies develop gaming strategies.
"Adding gamification to the workplace drives performance but it doesn't make up for bad management. If you are a bad manager, gamification won't help you," says Kris Duggan, chief executive of game-maker Badgeville.
Latest Game Theory: Mixing Work and Play - WSJ Oct. 10, 2011
In the early years of KPA/KRA's many times the metrics used resulted in a counter-productive results. It is suspected that they are still being misapplied.
So it is suggested that care be used in this possibly interesting process. On the surface, this technique should help to gain "engagement", and build stronger and more cohesive Teams. It might be used more with Front Line and entry level positions. It doubtful if this will significantly affect long-term motivation and retention. Training in it's proper use and establishment of standards might be needed.
It's beginning to seem that people need to be constantly entertained to be engaged, both in our education systems and now at work. While it may be that this is the case, what happens to those companies and people who can't marshal the skills and techniques? It is doubtful that everyone will want "gamification" applied to everything in their lives.
This technique can possibly lead to "burnout", as many sports professionals, in particular, find out. Being on too high a "charge," for too long, may not be life healthy. There is a need for work/life balance. A time to refresh/recharge and have some "downtime."
In order to speed the reader's time, the article is pasted below for your review with a link at the end. It is up to the reader, CEO or senior manager, HR department and company, whether to pilot or employ this method or not.
Latest Game Theory: Mixing Work and Play
By RACHEL EMMA SILVERMAN
Companies are trying to bring more play to the workday.Striving to make everyday business tasks more engaging, a growing number of firms, including International Business Machines Corp. and consulting firm Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Ltd., are incorporating elements of videogames into the workplace.
They're deploying reward and competitive tactics commonly found in the gaming world to make tasks such as management training, data entry and brainstorming seem less like work. Employees receive points or badges for completing jobs or meeting time limits for assignments, for example. Companies also may use leaderboards, which let players view one another's scores, to encourage friendly competition and motivate performance, experts say.
This "gamification" of the workplace, or "enterprise gamification" in tech-industry parlance, is a fast-growing business. Companies have used digital games for a number of years to help market products to consumers and build brand loyalty. What's emerging is using games to motivate their own employees.
All Work and All Play
Examples of videogames in workplace management.![[SB10001424052970203388804576617310816687604]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_s90Ygils2QIDTDXWP79gK7j9ekhqFsSqdjwEf0KnkA39Y_N9z3_KdsdcbhiQ1QwxDjxDyObwzNifbE5RMKe_zvCm9NRu8c-kSeLQaCWEqH5F2Ca7d-HUcvbkFZE2_NQ9EY8EcjpMzr0IARAIXkONA=s0-d)
Global consulting firm Deloitte employs digital games for its Deloitte Leadership Academy
Some companies build their own games in-house. Others rely on outside firms such as San Jose, Calif.-based Bunchball Inc. and Menlo Park, Calif.-based Badgeville Inc. to "gamify" various business processes including employee training.
Business software company SAP AG employs a variety of games, including one modeled after a golf game that assigns sales leads and environmental challenges that award points for tasks like carpooling, says Mario Herger, senior innovation strategist, at SAP in Palo Alto, Calif.
SAP even turned its gamification efforts into a game, holding a series of "Gamification Cups" to generate ideas for turning various business processes into games. One recent winner turned the traditionally boring process of invoicing into a competition.
IBM uses a variety of game-like strategies throughout much of the company including video games in which users can help make a virtual city more efficient or simulate various business scenarios, says Chuck Hamilton, IBM's virtual learning leader.
With some 400,000 employees, roughly 40% of whom work from home or on the road, gaming is a way to help colleagues connect and stay engaged, explains Mr. Hamilton.
And global consulting firm Deloitte employs digital games for its Deloitte Leadership Academy, an executive education program it uses to train clients and its own consultants.
Users receive virtual badges after completing training courses and "unlock" more complex training courses when basic levels are completed, says Frank Farrall, a partner with Deloitte in Melbourne, Australia, where its gamification initiative began last year. He says that the tools are still too new to gauge their effectiveness, but that they seem to be catching on among consultants.
"The reason why gamification is so hot is that most people's jobs are really freaking boring," says Gabe Zichermann, organizer of the "Gamification Summit" conference held last month in New York.
So far, the tactic has proved effective. A study last year by Traci Sitzmann, an assistant professor of management at the University of Colorado Denver Business School found that employees trained on video games learned more factual information, attained a higher skill level and retained information longer than workers who learned in less interactive environments.
LiveOps Inc., which runs virtual call centers, uses gaming to help improve the performance of its 20,000 call agents—independent contractors located all over the U.S. Starting last year, the company began awarding agents with virtual badges and points for tasks such as keeping calls brief and closing sales. Leaderboards allow the agents to compare their achievements to others.
Since the gamification system was implemented, some agents have reduced call time by 15%, and sales have improved by between 8% and 12% among certain sales agents, says Sanjay Mathur, vice president of product management at LiveOps, Santa Clara, Calif.
Still, gaming experts say there are some pitfalls for companies when implementing games internally. Companies need to make sure that the games are designed to actually reward desired behaviors and are not just doling out meaningless awards or badges.
Firms also need to make sure that friendly competition doesn't get out of hand, fostering animosity among employees, says Byron Reeves, a professor of communication at Stanford University and a co-founder of Seriosity Inc., a firm that helps companies develop gaming strategies.
"Adding gamification to the workplace drives performance but it doesn't make up for bad management. If you are a bad manager, gamification won't help you," says Kris Duggan, chief executive of game-maker Badgeville.
Latest Game Theory: Mixing Work and Play - WSJ Oct. 10, 2011
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Performance Evaluations - How to start?
Performance Evaluations can be the most critical and stressful part of Management regardless of whether it is for, or as, a front-line Manager, Senior Executive, or CEO. It is a critical component/activity as it identifies areas of proficiency and developmental areas for the individual and sets the stage for the coming period of performance for the employee.
Done well, it can be invigorating, supportive and motivating. It gains heightened engagement from the employee and this cascades and helps to build engagement within the organization.
Done poorly, it can result in an employee(s) who can: become demotivated, have poor morale, and can become a critic of any and all operations or activities within the group, division or company. Obviously, this needs to be avoided at all costs.
One of the easiest ways to start the evaluation process is to clearly communicate what the process of the performance evaluation will be. Communicate how it is to be initiated, the forms that will be used, metrics and standards employed, whether it will use a 360 review process, and what input the employee will have in the process. Obviously, the final Performance Evaluation or Review will be a document placed in the employee's Personnel File and should be communicated accordingly.
Done well, it can be invigorating, supportive and motivating. It gains heightened engagement from the employee and this cascades and helps to build engagement within the organization.
Done poorly, it can result in an employee(s) who can: become demotivated, have poor morale, and can become a critic of any and all operations or activities within the group, division or company. Obviously, this needs to be avoided at all costs.
One of the easiest ways to start the evaluation process is to clearly communicate what the process of the performance evaluation will be. Communicate how it is to be initiated, the forms that will be used, metrics and standards employed, whether it will use a 360 review process, and what input the employee will have in the process. Obviously, the final Performance Evaluation or Review will be a document placed in the employee's Personnel File and should be communicated accordingly.
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