Best Definition of Employee Engagement Ever
JT wrote what I think is the best definition of employee engagement ever in the comments on People I’d Like to Hire:
When they are there, they are there.
HR Measurement: The Difference Between Correlation and Causality
Several years ago when I worked at a big firm there was a group of people who were pushing “human capital measurement.” I got a meeting with a very important client in The Hague, and was in his office while a few HCM members called in from New York. At some point during the conversation, one of my coworkers said to the client over the conference line: “You just don’t understand your own data. We can do a sweeping survey of your people and get causation on several dimensions.”
Once I was able to pick my client off the floor…well, you know the rest. It wasn’t good. Two hints: 1) Don’t tell clients they don’t know what they’re doing, and 2) Don’t use the word “causation” to a scientist unless you really mean it.
The words correlation and causation get flung around casually in some HR circles, which is why when I read this simple summary of both terms this morning I thought it should be required reading. Here’s what Scott Selhorst at Tyner Blain writes in the opening paragraph:
One of the most common mistakes people make when looking at data is to jump to conclusions about the data. We all live in a world of cause and effect. It is only natural that when we see data that appears to show cause and effect, we assume that it does. But it often doesn’t.
Hey, it’s cold out this morning. And it’s dark. The cold makes the sun go out. Correlation? I don’t think so. It’s super important that HR people understand cause-and-effect in the business world. Use stats, but use caution when claiming that the latest training program delivered all the business results. You can be embarrassed pretty quickly.
Just Say No to National Boss’s Day
Today is National Boss’s Day in the U.S. I am officially declaring the start of a Just Say No to National Boss’s Day campaign. In fact, I’m declaring that the word “boss” should be tossed out, too. Just stop it. And if you have a Boss’s Day card just move straight to the trash bin. It’ll feel good. Go ahead. Don’t be afraid. Your “boss” won’t know.
Hey, is there a National Oppressed Employee Day? We should get that going.
Cool Little Perks
Cool little perks can go a long way with your employees. There’s dog walking. Dry cleaning. Massage therapy. When you read summaries of The Best Places to Work, it’s often the little and quirky things that are cited. Valleywag says this is one way Google keeps its employees jazzed in New York City:
Now here’s a perk: We hear that Google’s New York office gets local employees on the list of three clubs every weekend, so they don’t have to wait in line with the bridge-and-tunnel crowd.
What do you do to make your employees feel special? Being part of the club is fun; getting into a club is even more fun.
Employee Engagement, Athletic Attitude, and Breakfast Sandwiches
BREAKFAST SANDWICHES
“I gotcha.”
Those words started my day today. When I go to Cosi, which is a premium convenience restaurant, I’m happy.
“I gotcha” is what the man who makes the breakfast sandwiches says when I walk in. I’ve been going there for a while, and he remembers that I like — egg and swiss on a toasted sesame seed bagel. I know that might not seem like a lot, but this is at a restaurant in a major city with hundreds — if not thousands — of people streaming through daily. I’m just one of the huddled masses. But not there. I feel welcome.
I’m sure that guy doesn’t get paid any more money for saying “I gotcha” than if he just ignored me for five minutes like what happens at a lot of big city convenience restaurants. (That includes Starbucks, by the way, which used to be more personal, but is now more about running people through the line.) So what makes him say, “I gotcha”?
EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
Engagement. (Yes, I think that word is stupid, but it’s shorthand and you all know what I’m talking about.) They guy cares about his job. My guess is that he’s earning an hourly wage, which in this service economy era with horrible customer service, it’s a rarity. But not at my Cosi. Several people there pay attention. I drink decaffeinated coffee — a little room for cream, please — and I get it every time. Same with the egg bagel. Every time.
I won’t go anywhere else.
What would it take to get employee engagement like that at your shop? Here’s my take: We hire too much based on resume and academic credentials. But I tell you, as a small business owner, I’d rather have one person who cares than 10 people who have great paperwork and an I-don’t-care attitude.
ATHLETIC ATTITUDE
Would you ever take a chance on a guy who says “I gotcha” to do a professional job? I know that’s tough, but would you? Would you ever consider that you can teach technical skills, but you can never teach desire? In sports it’s a known issue: Get good athletes with a great work ethic and you can teach them the subtle skills. Get a great athlete with a bad attitude and what do you end up with? Nothing but problems.
I don’t think you can “make” lackadaisical employees be more engaged. Sure, you can do things to get people to be more motivated to work for the organization. You can set up teams and get people to cooperate. But it’s a bit hollow to take bad and disaffected talent and think that you can make them “engaged.” Give me a team full of “I gotcha” people and I’ll make a winner.
I GOTCHA
Think about the best team you were ever on. What was it that made it that way? Was it because you got paid the most? Was it because you had the resources? Was it about how the team was structured? Or was it because you worked among a group of people who had desire and talent? People who you could count on every morning to say, “I gotcha.”
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