Author Archives: Tom Foster

About Tom Foster

Tom Foster spends most of his time talking with managers and business owners. The conversations are about business lives and personal lives, goals, objectives and measuring performance. In short, transforming groups of people into teams working together. Sometimes we make great strides understanding this management stuff, other times it’s measured in very short inches. But in all of this conversation, there are things that we learn. This blog is that part of the conversation I can share. Often, the names are changed to protect the guilty, but this is real life inside of real companies.

Rare Air

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From the Ask Tom mailbag:

Question:
I have started the process of locating candidates for a Stratum IV position. How do you test an individual for capability given a specific job requirement. Specifically, after narrowing the field of candidates I would like to have them tested for the capability required in the position? Most of the canidates in our pool are age 30-38 and have promise but lack validating comparative experience.

Response:
I know you have been following the series we completed yesterday, defining the Level of Work in typical roles.
Calibrating Level I Roles
Calibrating Level II Roles
Calibrating Level III Roles
Calibrating Level IV Roles

I am often asked to interview candidates to assess their current capability or potential capability. It’s like a dog barking up the wrong tree. The cat’s not in that tree.

Instead of attempting to assess the potential capability of the candidate, spend your time defining the Level of Work in the role. Then, interview the candidates related to the work. I know this is a simple solution, but here is the brilliance.

You are absolutely NOT qualified to assess a person’s current or potential capability. Here is my humble news. I’m not either. Leave that assessment to higher powers.

But, managers are absolutely qualified to observe and assess behavior related to work. Competent managers can easily spot positive behavior, negative behavior and can instantaneously tell the difference. Play to your strengths as a manager. Define the Level of Work and interview the candidates related to the work. You will always stand on firm ground within your competence to conduct that interview.

The second part of your question indicates you are working through a young candidate pool, age 30-38, for a Stratum IV role. Elliott’s research is very clear. In the snapshot of a candidate pool, age 21-50, the frequency of people demonstrating capability for Stratum IV roles was 1 in 200. If you can expand your age search up to age 21-70, you will double your odds to 1 in 100. It is rare air. (Source – Life and Behavior of Living Organisms, pp 188).

Calibrating Level IV Roles

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From the Ask Tom mailbag:

Question:
How do you incorporate Time Span into a Role Description?

Response:
This is the fourth post in this series.
Calibrating Level I Roles
Calibrating Level II Roles
Calibrating Level III Roles

Level IV Roles
Level IV roles are typically responsible for multiple systems and subsystems. Left to their own devices, organizational systems fend for themselves and create friction at the departmental level. It is the role at Level IV to integrate these systems together. More than multi-tasking, Level IV managers understand the dependencies, inter-dependencies, contingencies and bottlenecks that exist between multiple systems. The goal is to integrate these systems together into a “whole system.”

Problem solving at Level IV is generally related to longer term initiatives which may take 2-5 years to achieve defined objectives. The focus in problem solving often requires the Level IV manager to step out of the internal elements of a single system to examine (often counter-intuitive) the output of multiple systems interacting together. This may involve the momentum of a reinforcing system offset by the impact of a balancing system. Sales, as a reinforcing system, are often offset by the capacity of operations, as a balancing system. Unrestrained sales that outstrip operational fulfillment create backorders and unhappy customers. Unrestrained operations that outstrip sales create inventory overstocks, carrying costs and bloated balance sheets.

Task assignments at Level IV are defined by operational planning and longer term strategic planning.

Calibrating Level III Roles

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From the Ask Tom mailbag:

Question:
How do you incorporate Time Span into a Role Description?

Response:
This is the third post in this series.
Calibrating Level I Roles
Calibrating Level II Roles

Level III Roles
Level III roles are populated by managers responsible for production consistency, to create predictability in organizational output. Their focus is on the creation, monitoring and improvement of systems. We depend on Level III roles to create sustainable efficiencies. The problems they solve are related to work flow, system layout and sequence.

Given a problem to solve, the central question at Level III is, “why didn’t our system anticipate this problem, or why didn’t our system, at least, mitigate the damage from this problem?” To solve these problems, those in Level III roles engage in comparative analysis or root cause analysis.

The Time Span of their longest projects typically range from 1-2 years. To manage projects of this length, Level III roles depend on planning scenarios, employing “what if” analysis. In pursuit of any task assignment, they create alternate paths to the goal, contingency planning to anticipate roadblocks outside their control.

Calibrating Level II Roles

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From the Ask Tom mailbag:

Question:
How do you incorporate Time Span into a Role Description?

Response:
This is the second post in this series. Yesterday, we discussed Level I roles.

Level II Roles
Level II roles are populated by supervisors, coordinators, project managers. The problems solved and decisions made are longer in Time Span than Level I roles. Level II roles are concerned with the coordination of production with materials and equipment. It is a team orientation rather than individual orientation.

Level II roles are concerned not only with the organization of materials for the current working session, but the ordering of future materials, for next week, next month. Experienced Level II roles may be responsible for materials and equipment procurement for projects three to six months in the future. The most experienced Level II roles may be expected to work on projects up to 12 months in the future.

Since Level II roles are typically responsible for the assembly of people, materials and equipment, all in place, at the appropriate time. To be effective, their tools consist of schedules, checklists and conducting short meetings.

Tomorrow, we will look at Level III roles.
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We are currently pre-registering for our next Hiring Talent program, beginning March 1, 2012.

Incorporating Time Span into a Role Description

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From the Ask Tom mailbag:

Question:
Can you give me an example of how you would incorporate Time Span in a job description?

Response:
In a role description, Time Span leads us to better understand the Level of Work in the role. Traditionally we describe the tasks and activities associated with the role, but rarely define the Level of Work.

In each level, we have to understand the nature of problems to be solved and the decisions to be made.

Level I Roles
Level I roles typically consist of individual direct output. This is where we find technicians, equipment operators, clerical, data entry. Team members in Level I roles receive task assignments from a supervisor, coordinator or designated manager. Most discretionary decisions revolve around pace and quality.

“Am I working fast enough to complete the assigned task in the time expected? Am I working carefully enough to meet the quality standard set for this task?”

The output of a Level I role is often the direct product or service experienced by your customer.

Team members in Level I roles may work in the same room with other people, but are rarely concerned with other teammates’ activities unless there are direct hand-offs of work tasks, one to another.

Work materials and equipment are organized only for the working session. Ordering additional work materials for future work, next week, next month, is generally outside the bounds of Level I, unless specifically authorized by min/max standards set by their manager.

Goals, or task assignments are generally expected to be completed within one day or a few days. Experienced team members may be expected to continue projects without supervision as long as a month. The most experienced team members in Level I roles may informally assist other team members in trial and error troubleshooting or modeling work routines or special skills and may be assigned projects as long as three months in length.

Tomorrow, we will look closer at Level II.
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We are currently pre-registering for our next Hiring Talent program, beginning March 1, 2012.

Calibrating the Role

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I want to welcome new subscribers from our workshops last week out in California. Busy week this week, Wilmington to Washington DC ending up in Chicago. Looking forward to reconnecting.
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“So, if the first step in the hiring process is to define the Level of Work in the role, how do I do that?” Ellen sounded off.

“Ellen, look, it’s not like you are starting from scratch,” I assured her. “You know how to talk about the tasks in the role. You use words to describe the activities. You just have to listen to the words. Let’s start with a Stratum I role. And let’s pick a discipline, like marketing. Describe to me what you would include in a role description that calibrates the role at Stratum I?”

“Okay, marketing. Stratum I. I know that Stratum I roles typically work on tasks that can be completed between one day, to one week, to one month to three months. I immediately begin to think about the administrative paperwork that is attached to any marketing campaign. Marketing is creative, collaborative, often involves outside vendors. There are contracts that have to be signed, media orders that have to be placed, layouts that have to be completed, colors that have to be approved. Many of those decisions are outside the bounds of a Stratum I role, but the paperwork still has to be typed, and filed. Phone calls still have to be made. Folders have to be completed that contain the contracts.”

“It is interesting that, in defining Stratum I decisions, you most clearly identified decisions that were NOT Stratum I. You talked about contracts that have to be signed, and indicated that was outside the bounds of Stratum I?”

“Well, yes,” Ellen described confidently. “A contract is about a commitment with a client. The contract commits resources, budget, managerial oversight. The Time Span of those commitments are way beyond three months.”

“So, you WERE listening. To the words you used to describe the role. The clues are all there.”

Mumbo-Jumbo

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“So, what you are saying to me,” Ellen clarified, “is that I should focus on the work, more clearly define the level of work and then interview the candidate related to the work?”

“Yes. When you embark on this witch hunt to assess the Stratum capability of the candidate, it is too easy to go astray. Your assessment might be right, might be wrong, but in any case, it’s a number, a floating number unrelated to the decision you are trying to make as the hiring manager. The decision is to determine if this candidate will be effective in completing the tasks in the role. That’s it. Everything else becomes mumbo-jumbo.” (Mumbo-jumbo is a scientific term used to describe irrelevant data).

“So, what’s really important is to define the level of work?” she concluded. “How do I do that?”

What Does It Matter?

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“So, I have a candidate that I hope is up to the job. But what I really want to know is, whether he has Stratum I, Stratum II or Stratum III capability. Can you conduct an interview and tell me?” Ellen asked.

“Not likely,” I replied. “But let’s suppose I could. What would that tell you?”

“Well, if he had Stratum III capability, that would be better than Stratum II?” she guessed.

“Would it?” I pressed.

Ellen’s brow furrowed, wondering if I had forgotten all my math skills. “Three is higher than two.”

“What does that matter?” I asked again. I waited, and then some. “In the end, does it matter whether this person is successful in the role?”

“Well, yes.” Ellen was a bit exasperated with me.

“When you define the role, is it important to define the level of work?”

“That’s what I have been trying to get to, the capability of the person to do the level of work, the level of work required by the role.”

“So, have you defined the level of work?”

“Yes, in the Role Description, we describe the activity and what this person will be responsible for.”

“But have you defined the level of work? What is the complexity of problems that must be solved, the decisions that must be made and the Time Span of the goals in the role?”

Ellen ran through the Role Description in her head. “Not specifically. The job title is Manager and this person will be responsible for everything that goes on in that department. But, we haven’t thought about specifically defining the level of work.”

“If you can do that, define the level of work, the complexity of problems to be solved and the decisions to be made, then, interview for that, you will be ahead of the game. And you will also be in a better position to judge the capability of the person related to the work. It’s all about the work.”

Assessing Capability

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From the Ask Tom mailbag:

Question:
How can I tell? You talked about the four states of mental processing. When I look at a person, meet a person, talk to a person, how can I tell? How can I tell if they have Stratum I, II, III or IV capability?

Response:
The short answer is, you can’t tell. The longer answer is, it’s not your place to determine capability. Leave that to a higher authority.

Look, you are a manager. You are not an amateur psychologist.

Can you spot positive behavior from your team members? Can you spot negative behavior? Why does it only take nanoseconds for you to tell the difference? Because you are a manager, that’s what managers do. Play to your strengths as a manager.

  • Is it within your authority as a manager to determine what tasks need to be completed?
  • Is it within your authority as a manager to determine a reasonable amount of time for each task?
  • Is it within your authority as a manager to evaluate the effectiveness of the person you have assigned to each task?

That is your playing field. It is within your authority to evaluate the effectiveness of your team members related to the task. There are a handful of factors that contribute to or detract from effectiveness – skills, circumstances, interest, habits. Stay on this playing field, that’s what you are good at.

The question of a person’s maximum capability is not your issue. Your issue, as a manager, is ONLY what is capability related to the task. It’s all about the work.

The Way We See the World

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From the Ask Tom mailbag –

Question:
In yesterday’s blog, you mentioned a Post-It Note mentality. What’s a Post-It Note mentality?

Response:
When Elliott Jaques described the four states of mental processing, he was describing the way our brains perceive the world. This perception is used in problem solving and making decisions. I found this picture of a Post-It Note way of seeing the world. Below the picture I have clipped in the descriptions of Jaques four states. You tell me.

  • Stratum I – Declarative Processing – the ability to focus on single task, direct output, solving problems through trial and error. Logic consists mostly of opinion without evidence to support.
  • Stratum II – Cumulative Processing – the ability to piece together separate elements of a problem, pattern detecting, solving problems through past experience, documented in SOPs, best practices.
  • Stratum III – Serial Processing – the ability, not only to see patterns, but cause and effect relationships between elements. Problem solving through comparative analysis, root cause analysis. The ability to sequence discrete elements into an efficient system.
  • Stratum IV – Parallel Processing – the ability to handle multiple serial processes simultaneously. Not multi-tasking, but seeing the interdependency, contingency and bottlenecks that exist between multiple systems and sub-systems. Problem solving through systems analysis.

Post-It Note mentality. Which is it?