Category Archives: Culture

Assumptions and Blame

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“I’m done with the drama,” Ellie protested. “I try to promote a positive atmosphere around here, but all I get is bullying and backstabbing.”

“Oh, really?” I asked.

“Yes,” she replied. “Everyone seems to scatter for cover when something goes wrong, blaming other people, scooting out from under any accountability.”

“Are you sure this isn’t an isolated incident?” I wanted to know.

“No, this is more like a constant mental state of the team,” Ellie explained. “People position themselves so they always have an out, denying they have any responsibility. The air of blame is so thick you can cut it. You can feel it in the quiet whispers, the general tone of water-cooler talk.”

“I assume this is not organic evolution,” I smiled. “How did things get this way?”

“It started with our continuous improvement process. We were looking for things to improve on. We made a list, or rather I made a list. No one else could come up with anything.”

“Oh, so you’re the culprit,” my smile turned to a grin.

“Don’t lay this at my feet,” Ellie protested. “It’s the team that can’t get their act together.”

“And, you are their manager,” I nodded. “You describe the team as a group of incompetent players. And incompetence always seeks out blame. Competent people are in the game to get better. So, which do you have? Incompetence or competence?”

Ellie sat in silence before she finally spoke. “I knew you were going to pin this on me. You think my team’s behavior is influenced by the way I see them. As competent or incompetent.”

“Yes,” I agreed. “Our assumptions, the way we see the world drives behavior. If you see your team as incompetent, you will drive blaming behavior. If you see your team as competent, you will drive improvement. So, you better find out what they are good at.”

First Assumptions

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“What’s the quickest way to change your culture?” I asked.

“Great question,” Hudson replied. “Shifting culture usually takes time and intention.”

“But, there is a way,” I nodded.

“Is this a trick question?” Hudson wanted to know.

I continued to nod. “It’s not a trick, but it’s generally not where you look. The quickest way to change your culture, is to bring in new people. They bring a culture with them.”

Hudson smiled.

“Unfortunately,” I continued, “that culture they bring with them may be counter to the culture you intend. If, based on surveys, we find that most people are disengaged at work, then I assume most companies have cultures that are disengaging. In companies where people feel undervalued, underutilized, not challenged, team members will engage in coping behaviors that may be counterproductive. They quit, and get hired by you. Guess what assumptions they bring with them? And, that is where culture starts, with their assumptions, their beliefs, the way they see the world. Your initial employee orientation may be the most important time they spend to ensure they understand the new culture they will become a part of.”

A Dollar More

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“Why do people work?” I asked.

It was an innocent question, but Shari knew I had an agenda. “Okay. I’ll bite,” she replied. “I was going to say they work for the money, but I know you too well.”

I laughed. “You are correct. People work because they need the money. But, if that is all they work for, then you will be hard pressed to keep them when a competitor comes knocking on their door, and offers a dollar more.”

Shari stared at me with a half smile.

“Would it surprise you,” I continued, “to find out that people need to work, more than they need the money? Don’t get me wrong, they need the money. But, they also need the work. To lead a happy, fulfilled life, people need to work, to make a contribution to a group which they hold in high regard. And, it takes somewhere between 35-40 hours per week to create that internal feeling of significance. If you can create a safe place, where they can do their best work, and that work is valued by their most important group, now you get the beginnings of engagement.”

Who You Hang With

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“You have collected the data, what you know, from people around you?” I asked a rhetorical question.

Sebastian pursed his lips, “That’s where I get my data from,” he replied.

“So, what you know, is what people have told you?” Same question, different words. “And, not just the data you collect from your team, but what people tell you about other things. What you want, your strategy, guidance and ideas. As you look at the people around you, it makes a lot of difference who they are. You cannot pick your parents, often cannot pick your school teacher, but as we go through life, we do select the people around us and who we depend upon to share their view of the world. It’s the reverse of the old adage – if you lay down with dogs, you’re going to get up with fleas. Take care who you hang out with. Do these people have your best interests at heart? Do they want to help you get where you want to go? Do they even know, or care to find out where you want to go?”

It Started With Pizza

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“You know that pizza party we had last Friday, for all the people on the team who stayed late, helped us get that project shipped?” Henry smiled.

“Yes,” I replied, waiting for the rest of the story.

“That worked so well, I thought I would expand that idea,” he added. “I think, if I offered restaurant gift cards for extra effort, things might perk up around here.”

“I am all for extending appreciation,” I nodded. “Sometimes, pizza goes a long way. But, what do you think will happen with your gift card program?”

“Sometimes, I see people slow walking pieces of projects, no skip in their step, no smiles, no enthusiasm. I thought maybe, if I gave out a few gift cards, this might be a happier place.”

I winced. “If you create a gift card game, do you think it will be a happier place, or do you think you simply create a culture of performance for gift cards?”

Ordinary People

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“My team is a bunch of idiots,” Paula started. “They can’t get anything right. Everything they touch turns to rust.”

“Oh, really?” I replied. “When did this start?”

“Always been this way,” she said.

I nodded. “Before you were promoted to manager, weren’t you a member of this team? Were they idiots then? Were you one of the idiots?”

“Okay, okay,” Paula agreed. “Maybe I was an idiot, back then. It’s just so frustrating being a manager. I wish I could get better people on my team.”

“Why would that make a difference?” I asked.

“If I had better people, I could get better results,” she pursed her lips with a defiant look in her eyes.

“So, you think you would get extraordinary results if you had extraordinary people?” I prodded.

“Yes, absolutely,” Paula sat up straight.

“What if I told you there were not that many extraordinary people out there. That most people are just like you and me, more ordinary than brilliant. Your challenge, as a manager, is to get extraordinary results from ordinary people. If that were true, what would you do? What would you work on? By the way, if you WERE able to get extraordinary results from ordinary people, maybe your team wouldn’t look so ordinary.”

The External Push

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“I am fairly confident,” Marissa supplied. “I know what I want. I have a cause, rather a cause that has me, that I care deeply about. I think I have what it takes.”

“All necessary, but not sufficient,” I replied.

“What am I missing?” she asked.

“You think that, to be successful in your endeavor, all that is required is an internal drive, perhaps a singular focus toward that goal. But, success is more complicated than that. There is not a singular reason, but a multitude of complex elements and events that will determine the outcome. And, you will likely have to respond to most of them in one way or another. You think you have the internal fortitude to meet the challenge. But you will wake up one morning, and not be in the mood. Some one thing will look too difficult. You will go inside and come up empty. All may look lost. In addition to your internal toughness, you must surround yourself with people who will support your journey, who will listen to your story, encourage your spirit and not allow you to falter. This is your inner circle, who you go to for counsel and guidance when what is inside you, is not enough. They will not let you off the hook for the sake of a lame excuse, a bit of trouble or something unforeseen. Look around you. Who are you holding hands with?  You will need them.”

Moving Levels of Performance

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“I think we covered this before,” Stephanie chuckled. “I always seem to drop back to training, more training. If I see something I don’t like, the answer is more training. But training doesn’t seem to move the needle anymore.”

“Think about it this way,” I suggested, “if training is something that happens before the behavior we want, and gets the team to a minimum level of performance, then why doesn’t more training move the needle?”

Stephanie paused. “To move the needle is only going to come with practice. Training only tells the team what to do, in what sequence. Training doesn’t observe their behavior, watch their repetition, suggest small changes in method, drill them with more repetition.”

“Stop!” I said. “Listen to your description. Observe behavior, watch repetition, suggest small changes. Does that sound like training?”

Stephanie’s chuckle turned to laughter. “No. Training gets the team to a minimum level of performance. Observing behavior, watching repetition, suggesting small changes is coaching. Higher levels of performance don’t come with training. Higher levels of performance come with coaching.”

Fingers, Ten of Them

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“What gives?” I asked, one of my favorite diagnostic questions.

“I’m puzzled,” Stephanie replied. “Our training curriculum for this new process seems on par with the rest of our training, but the team just doesn’t seem to get this new routine. I know we introduced some new equipment, including robotics into the work cells, but it doesn’t look that different from other things we are doing.”

“It may look the same to you, but it’s different to them,” I prodded.

“But, we trained them on the new work methods. I just don’t get it.”

“So, do you think they need more training?” I floated.

“I hope not. We have already lost enough productivity with the training they already have. Besides, the training is just the basic stuff. You know, power on, power off, lock-out, tag-out,” she explained.

“Okay, so the team is not going to cut off their fingers. So, what’s your beef?”

“Throughput. Units through the work cell is way down. They were going faster when they were doing things manually,” Stephanie shook her head.

“So, you discovered something about training?” I smiled. “Training only gets the team to minimum performance. What gets the team to maximum performance? You know, besides keeping all their fingers and toes?”

Unofficial Whispers

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All kinds of conversations occur about people and behavior in every company. These conversations will take place at the water cooler, the coffee break room, in meetings and in emails. They will occur in official communications and unofficial whispers. All of the conversations drive and document the culture inside the organization.

For the company that has determined its values mindset, actively talking about the positive aspects of people and their contribution (behaviors) is critical. The purpose is to identify those conversations and amplify them so they become the driving force, the tribal history.

These are the conversations that keep us alive. These are the conversations that distinguish one company from the next, one that is struggling and the other that sees success. What does yours sound like?