Tag Archives: employee engagement

Posted on

How Productive Are You?

by

I recently attended a meeting with other car dealers and one of the common topics of conversation was employee productivity. We discussed it from several angles and tried to quantify how much more value there is in a productive employee versus one that is not. When you look at the numbers, it is amazing the difference.

productive

Am I Productive?

As I thought about this idea, I wondered how productive I am on a consistent basis. I thought about the various distractions I have during a normal day and how those distractions often destroy my efforts to be productive! Have you ever experienced these distractions?

The more I thought about it, the more I felt guilty! The thought that struck me the most was the following question:

Would I be more productive if I knew I was being videotaped for all other employees to watch?

As I thought about this question, I realized that I would probably be embarrassed if everyone at our company knew how many times I allowed myself to be distracted in a given day. If they knew how often I was not very productive, they would probably hang me!

What about you? Would you be more productive if you were being watched? Can you think of areas where you allow distractions to keep you from being productive? Have you thought about this before?

How To Be More Productive

Immediately, my mind began working on this new problem. How can I begin eliminating the distractions that I encounter every day? How can I ensure more work is done per hour while I am at work? What precautions should I take to avoid distractions in the first place? How productive could I be if I faced 75% fewer distractions?

Maybe your mind does not work like this, but mine went into overdrive! Keep in mind that all I am describing happened in seconds in my head. I went from zero to sixty miles an hour in a few seconds!

My next step was to start listing my distractions. As I did this in my head, I came to a startling realization…

These distractions had names.

Specific Distractions!

When I say they had names, I do not mean names like “coffee break” or “Facebook” or anything like that. I mean they had actual names like “John” and “Barbara” and “Charlie” (actual names changed to protect the innocent!).

I realized that the majority of my “distractions” – the causes of those times when I was less productive – were actually people. These people, in most cases, are people I am impacting for eternity in one way or another. These people, if I am truly honest and focused on what’s most important, are not distractions at all!

Now What?

At this point I stopped. I quickly went from sixty miles an hour back down to zero. I just sat there, thinking. I imagine you might be doing the very same right now.

I will tell you right now that I do not have the answer to this problem. I cannot give you a simple, fact-based prescription to the problem of balancing relationships on the job with the off-setting reduction in productive time. If you know it and can present it concisely, please feel free to do so in the comment section below. We would all appreciate it!

What I can tell you is that the issue of begin productive is not as simple as it looked at the beginning of this post. Clearly, there is more to this than can be quantified with a ratio or metric from a financial statement.

Start At The Beginning

In an effort to sort through this, let’s review what we do know.

First, this world is temporary. That means that everything in this world is also temporary – including our jobs and businesses.

Second, people (our souls, not our physical bodies) are eternal. Even after this world is gone, we will continue to exist. Where, and with Whom, we exist depends upon where we place our trust during this life.

When we truly understand these two issues, it becomes more clear whether it is more important to be productive on our jobs or to impact others for eternity. There really is no arguing as to whether it is more important to produce an extra two widgets per hour or to point someone toward the God who loves them. Do we agree on that?

There’s More To It…

If it were only that simple then we would not even need to discuss this.

It is not that simple. Just consider the following Scripture:

Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free.
Ephesians 6:5-8

Working For Christ

In this passage, we are told to work as if we are working for Christ Himself. We are not necessarily excused from allowing distractions to keep us from being productive for our supervisors or the company owners – even if the distraction is an eternal one!

No, we cannot simply blow off our work because we see our “distractions” as eternal souls and want to point them to God. At the same time, we cannot ruthlessly eliminate all of our “distractions” for the purpose of being productive in a temporary pursuit. This has to be a Both/And effort rather than an Either/Or one.

Both/And Opportunity

We do not have to choose EITHER having an eternal impact on those around us OR being productive for our employers. While it will take creativity to make it work, it can happen that BOTH are achieved.

We need to do the best we can to BOTH eliminate all non-eternal distractions to increase our productivity AND respond to those around us in a way that points them to God. Take some time today and brainstorm this. Think about ways to increase your productive time AND to increase your influence on those around you.

I look forward to hearing about the results!

Are you as productive as you should be?

Do you have similar “distractions”?

What ideas have you come up with to balance productivity and eternal influence?

Posted on

Are You Waiting To Be Told What To Do?

by

Our business is not a big one in the grand scheme of things, but we do get a good cross-section of employees with roughly 100 people working here. As a result, I have seen those that learn the job quickly and others that do not. Some understand their job and do what is necessary without being asked while others are waiting to be told what to do.

waiting to be told

Waiting To Be Told

If you have been working for any length of time, you have probably witnessed this. For the most part, any new employee needs to be told what to do in the beginning, right? Unless they have worked that exact job before, there are things they need to be told first.

They probably need to know WHAT to do, WHY, WHEN, and HOW they are to do it, and maybe a few other tips. Once they get this, they should be able to go forward on their own with only occasional guidance along the way.

Still Waiting…

The problem is that some employees are still waiting to be told what to do. You probably know some of these people where you work. Maybe they work for you. No matter how many times they have read the job description or listened to the training, they refuse to take action on their own. They can sometimes be found actually standing around because no one stopped to tell them what to do next! It really amazes (and frustrates) me!

To be clear, I am not talking about waiting to be told about NEW tasks, responsibilities, or ideas. As employees are being developed for promotion or more responsibility, they need to be taught more. They cannot know the new stuff until it is taught to them. I am only now talking about what they already know (or should know) they are to be doing.

What About Us?

So now that I have you worked up and as frustrated as I am, let’s (again) turn this around to be about us. You probably knew this was coming, didn’t you? For the sake of this discussion, we are the “employees” in this picture and God is the “employer”.

As you go through the rest of this post, ask yourself if you are acting just like one of these employees. Ask yourself if you are “standing around” waiting to be told by God (again) what He wants you to do. Be honest with yourself and allow Him to guide you. He will show you what He wants you to see.

Examples

Let’s take an easy example to start with.

Our “handbook” (the Bible) says that we are to love God (Matthew 22:37-40), right? This is called the Greatest Commandment and we should all be aware of it by now. We have probably read it many times and have likely heard sermons (training) on it as well.

So, are you DOING it? Are you really LOVING God? Are you doing it with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength? OR are you waiting to be told again that you are to do this?

If I am honest in answering these questions for myself, then I would say I am doing it sometimes and I am trying to do it other times. I can’t really say that at any point in time I am sitting around waiting to be told again to love God. I think I have a passing grade here, but not by much.

Another Example!

Let’s get a little tougher. We have all likely heard of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20) as well, right? We are told here to go and make disciples of all nations. Again, we have read it and heard many sermons on it. I doubt there are any of us that can honestly claim ignorance here.

So, again I ask the question. Are you DOING it? Are you truly making disciples? Are you mentoring someone in the Christian walk? Are you engaging your employees, co-workers, and others in Christian ministry? Are you teaching what you have been taught?

In the past, I could answer this question with an easy “Yes!” without blinking an eye. Lately, I have allowed distractions to creep in and now I am unable to answer with confidence. What about you? Have you made an effort? Have you allowed distractions to interfere?

More Examples!

I won’t go into detail with each of the following areas from our “handbook,” but I will at least list them and let you ask yourself the questions. Think about each category and ask yourself the tough questions. Where are you waiting to be told what to do? If that is difficult for you or if you think you will go too easy on yourself, ask someone else to help you. Maybe that can be the start of a discipling relationship!

Evangelism (Acts 1:8)

Tithing (Matthew 23:23)

Love your enemies (Matthew 5:43-44)

Forgive your enemies (Luke 17:4)

Praying for others (1 Timothy 2:1-4)

Bible study (2 Timothy 2:15)

Take Action!

When you have had enough abuse for one day and you are ready to close out this post, stop and do one more thing. Decide on one, only one, of these areas and commit to do something!

Commit to make at least one change. Start doing something that you already know you should be doing. It will be the first step down a great and rewarding path!

Where are you doing what you know you should be doing?

Where are you waiting to be told what to do?

What are you going to do about it?

Posted on

Are You Facing Giants?

by

Have you ever watched a football game and wondered why none of the players on the offensive team’s sidelines appear worried about getting hit by one of the giants that are playing for the defensive team? In many cases, they are talking, laughing, even have their backs turned to the game on the field. Why are they not thinking about the possibility of getting hit at any given moment?

giants

No Danger On The Sidelines

Well, if you think about it, I am not asking a difficult question. The reason they are not worried or thinking about it is that they are not IN the game. When on the sidelines, they are not an active threat to the game that is being played out on the field. They are, at that point, harmless to the cause and efforts of the defensive team.

Recent Devotion

As I mentioned in my last post, I have been reading from Streams in the Desert lately and it has been good for me. While this is not replacing my time in the Bible, I am really getting some good insights from these short devotions. Here is a recent quote from this book:

We encounter giants only when we are serving God and following Him. It was when Israel was going forward that the giants appeared, for when they turned back into the wilderness, they found none (Numbers 13-14).

Many people believe that the power of God in a person’s life should keep him from all trials and conflicts. However, the power of God actually brings conflict and struggles.

Giants On The Battle Field

Just like the football players on the sidelines, we Christians are not in any danger of facing giants (trials, conflicts, etc.) when we are sitting on the sidelines of the spiritual war going on around us. When in this position, we simply are not a threat to the opposition.

However, if we step out onto the field of battle and begin fighting for God’s glory and the eternal salvation of those around us, we should expect to face giants! We become a threat to the enemy and he will react accordingly.

The Enemy Is Real

I am not one of those people who run around all the time blaming satan for everything happening to me. I do not give him credit (or blame) for my sins and I recognize that many of the situations I face are simply consequences of my prior poor decisions or misdirected desires.

At the same time, I AM one of those people that believes the Bible. I do believe it is God’s Word of instruction AND WARNING to us. I take what it says to be the truth and I try to live accordingly.

Scriptures To Heed

The following verses paint a picture that I believe we need to recognize as being real:

After they (Paul and Barnabas) had evangelized that town and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, to Iconium, and to Antioch, strengthening the disciples by encouraging them to continue in the faith and by telling them, “It is necessary to pass through many troubles on our way into the kingdom of God.”
Acts 14:22-23

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33

You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
Matthew 10:22

Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.
Matthew 24:9

“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.
John 15:18-21

Do not be surprised, my brothers and sisters, if the world hates you.
1 John 3:13

Is that enough Scripture to give you a clear picture? If not, then let me add one more…

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
1 Peter 5:8

Are You Facing Giants?

Hopefully, this makes it very clear that there are giants for us to face if we are out on the field of battle. The Bible is very clear about this and we should not ignore what is said about these giants.

So now the question is this – are you facing giants?

Are you seeing the opposition of the enemy as you go about trying to do business from an eternal perspective? Are you seeing evidence of the spiritual battle going on around you?

Confused?

Or does this post confuse you? Instead, do you feel everything is going along pretty easily? Has it been awhile since you last faced giants opposing you in your efforts at Christian ministry?

I certainly cannot (nor intend to) judge your circumstances or your own situation. All I want to do is raise the questions and let you prayerfully seek God’s face on this issue.

If you are not seeing giants coming at you in opposition to your Christian ministry efforts, then you at least need to consider that you are not on the battlefield. It is at least a possibility that you are instead on the sidelines, no longer a threat to the enemy.

Don’t Lose Heart

If you ARE facing giants on a daily basis, do not lose heart! You are not on the wrong path simply because it is so hard. The opposite may very well be true.

You also need to prayerfully seek God to make sure you are still headed in the right direction, but you do need to know that the giants you face are to be expected if you are out on the battlefield! I leave you with this encouragement:

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
2 Corinthians 4:16-18

What do your giants look like?

How do you maintain your faith in the shadow of the giants?

If you are not facing giants, why do you think that is?

Posted on

6 Keys To Graceful Employee Terminations, Part 2

by

When running a business, there are many things you will enjoy doing! Termination of an employee is most likely NOT one of those things. While it is not enjoyable, it is sometimes necessary.

In my last post, guest poster William Higgins wrote about the pain that can be caused with a poorly handled employee termination. William gave us his first 3 Keys in that post. The following continuation of this guest post from will give you the remaining 3 great tips on how to execute terminations with grace. William is Founder and Managing Director of Mindware, Inc., a performance development, consulting, and publishing organization.

termination

What Should You Do?

As an employer, there are numerous valid reasons for termination of an employee’s business relationship, and you cannot stop the pain the person experiences. The pain is real. The experience hurts. It’s condescending and degrading to just ask them to trust God and know it will all work out for the best. While it’s true God will work things out, that kind of observation minimizes their feelings.

You will want to be sure you coordinate with your Human Resources department to be sure you are abiding by federal and state laws. While you cannot sidestep the pain of a termination, there are things you can do to terminate with dignity, value, and grace.

Keys 4-6 For Graceful Terminations

4. Be affirming.
A termination can feel very demeaning to the individual being laid off. It’s like what they were doing wasn’t of value, like their time invested with the organization was wasted. Whatever the reason the person is being terminated, there is always something in them that can be affirmed. At one point they contributed something of value to the organization. Find that and reflect back to them the value of that contribution. Or, identify what you see as strengths they have at the present, and tell them about those.

If they’re being terminated for performance reasons, be sure to let them know their performance is not what it once was, with examples to demonstrate your point, and that they still have something to contribute to another organization. 1 Corinthians 12 is a chapter devoted to this purpose; everyone in the body of Christ has a purpose and is of value. So it is in your organization. Mirror that back to the individual being laid off.

5. Be helpful.
Provide resources to help the person move on with their life. They may feel like it’s the end of life as they know it when they hear the news, but you need to let them know they still have skills and abilities to contribute elsewhere. Be sure they understand that God has not deserted them just because they are now unemployed. When Jethro spoke to Moses in Exodus 18, he didn’t just tell him he was not being as efficient as he could be, he also provided resources in the form of counsel on how to delegate some of the responsibility to others.

Be sure the individuals impacted understand what their severance package includes; continued medical and other benefits, lump sum, continued salary period, etc. Provide all details in writing so they can refer to them later after the shock wears off. Also review work completion expectations and plans to transition their projects.

The person you are terminating requires resources to both affirm their faith and provide practical assistance in moving forward. Your Road to Damascus: 6 Biblical Secrets for an Effective Job Search does just that. This book integrates biblical guidelines and strategies with cutting-edge techniques to give the reader a spiritual advantage in their search. Outplacement assistance with Christian career coaches is also available for individuals and groups based on this book.

Go to www.MindWarePublishing.com for more information on the book or to Contact Us regarding outplacement service.

6. Be open.
Survivors need to know what the future holds. Let them know why this action was necessary, and how it will enable the organization to move forward to achieving the goals that have been established. Let them know the resources you are providing those individuals laid-off, to help them see that you’re not dismissing people without caring for their future well-being.

When Christ was preparing for the crucifixion and to leave His disciples He let them know what was going to take place, the resources they were going to receive in the person of the Holy Spirit, and how they were to move forward. In John 14-17 we read how He helped them understand that, while things were not going to be the same with Him gone, they were going to move forward in power.

While terminations are sometimes necessary as economies shift, suppliers change, product lines are altered, and organizational objectives transition to reflect other changes, a termination does not have to be a demeaning, distasteful, and destructive experience. It can launch the impacted individual into a whole new adventure with God, but it needs to be handled sensitively, with grace, and with the Holy Spirit’s guidance.

As a leader you model the person of Christ in your organization. How would He handle a termination? Actually He did. Read how He handled Judas in Matthew 26:20-25 and you’ll see He practiced what we’ve been discussing.

You can too.

I would love to hear what you think about this approach to handling employee terminations.

What do you think was the best tip of the six?

What struggles have you had in termination of employees?

Did you learn something here that will help in the future?

Posted on

How Is Vision Critical to Christian Leadership?

by

Probably one of the top five books I have read in the past ten years is called Visioneering by Andy Stanley. In my mind, this book ranks with classics like Good to Great by Jim Collins and The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey.

vision

In Stanley’s book, he goes into great detail about why vision is so important to Christian leadership. He also gives solid advice about how to go about casting that vision to your organization. If you have not read this book, I highly recommend it! I would loan mine to you, but someone borrowed it several years ago and has failed to return it. I am hoping they read this post and get the hint!

This is my third post in the series on Credible Christian Leadership. In this series we are looking at the four building blocks of Christian leadership proposed by James Kouzes and Barry Posner in their book, Credibility. We started with honesty in my last post. Today, we are talking about being forward-looking, or casting vision.

Vision From Two Perspectives

Anyway, let’s talk about vision from a couple of perspectives. First, we need to discuss why it is important as a building block for Christian leadership. Second, we need to address what it looks like in a Christian leader.

People Want A Big Vision

If you read much about employee engagement, you will find that compensation is not always the most important issue affecting job satisfaction among employees. In many cases, the desire to work for something that is bigger than themselves turns out to rank higher than compensation for employees.

People want to be a part of something. That is one reason the Olympic Games are so interesting to people in all walks of life. When they watch the events on TV, they feel a part of the team. Americans, regardless of economic status or job position, feel like they are a part of a national team. It is invigorating to most everyone and the vast majority are not participating in any way other than as spectators.

If you want to tap into this passion with those you are leading, then they need to know you are looking into the future. They need to know you are seeing a better picture ahead and showing them how they can be a part of this vision.

What Should Vision Look Like?

Assuming you want this, let’s take a look at what this should actually look like from a Christian perspective.

For a Christian leader, our vision for the future cannot simply include things like more money and a comfortable retirement. If this is all it is, then we are showing them nothing any different than what the world is showing them. This just cannot be.

Temporal And Eternal Vision

Instead, this vision, coming from a Christian leader, needs to extend into the future on two levels – both the temporal (this life) and the eternal (the life to come). If we can cast a vision of a better future on both levels, we will have people eager to follow we and hear what we have to say.

Just like Jesus did with those He ministered to, we do need to provide for their physical needs in our vision. We cannot expect to lead people with no consideration of their physical existence and the needs that go along with it. If we ignore their physical needs when we are casting our vision for the future, then we will end up walking alone.

Stretch Their Picture

The difference for the Christian leader is that we are not painting a picture for them that only includes their own needs. We are instead showing them a larger picture that includes the needs of those around them. We want to show them that they can be a part of improving the community in which they live. This community includes their coworkers, neighbors, etc.

Eternal Vision

At the same time we are casting the vision for a better life here and now, we should also be casting the vision for a better life to come. As Christian leaders, we should be leading them to consider their life beyond this life.

In July’s C12 segment, the author describes it this way:

We need to believe, in our own hearts, that this earthly life is one of struggle and that the good life awaits us in Heaven. We lead based on the eternal perspective.

If we can cast this dual vision in a compelling way, we will draw people to God. Again, we are not looking for the spotlight. Instead, we are looking to cast that spotlight on Him and give Him the glory for it all.

Do you have a vision for a better future?

If not, are you praying for God to reveal it to you?

If so, are you casting this vision on both levels?

Posted on

What Do Chick-Fil-A, Running Shoes, Kids Camp, and Christian Faith Have In Common?

by

Every once in a while, the stars align, God smiles on you, and an opportunity comes along that ties everything together that you stand for. Well, tomorrow, this very kind of event is happening for our company! For a Christian business, it is the perfect mixture of ministry, promotion, and employee engagement.

chick-fil-a ministry

Several months ago, I was approached about an amazing opportunity coming to our community. It turns out that Chick-Fil-A has agreed to bring their Camp Winshape daycamp to our town. A local church has partnered with them to do this. But there is a twist to it – one that makes this opportunity that much better!

Camp Winshape, a part of Truett Cathy’s Winshape Foundation, is described on their website as an experience that offers kids fun, adventure, lasting friendships and a closer relationship with God. At the core of their programs is a relentless pursuit of providing a camp environment that challenges campers to sharpen their character and deepen their Christian faith and relationships.

Scholarship Opportunities Added!

The local church and Chick-Fil-A had agreed that they could handle roughly 300 kids for the five-day camp. But rather than offering the 300 slots to the public in the normal fashion – first come, first served – they decided they wanted half of the slots to be filled by kids that could not afford the tuition! With the tuition at roughly $200 per child, many kids are financially unable to enjoy the benefits of this camp. Of course, that also meant someone had to come up with roughly $30,000 to fund the 150 scholarships!

At this point, the operators of the local Chick-Fil-A restaurants in our town stepped up and proposed an idea. They decided they would host a Chick-Fil-A Race Series event in our town, using the sponsorships from local businesses to help fund the scholarships for the kids’ tuition expenses. That’s where we came into the picture!

We Are Title Sponsors!

The local operators, knowing our ministry mindset, approached us about being the title sponsors for this race event. The event would include both running and walking segments so that more people could participate. Chick-Fil-A corporate hosts these races in communities all over their company footprint, so they are experienced with the details.

As sponsors, we get to be associated with Chick-Fil-A, which is the very kind of company we are striving to be! We will have XX employees acting as volunteers to help with the race day logistics. We also have more than 30 employees and family members running or walking in the various race events.

Our Benefits

Obviously, we get to market this event as well. We will have cars displayed on site. We will have attention-getting pace cars with our name all over them to lead the races as well as to bring up the rear. Our company logo is prominently featured on the posters and flyers that are posted in the four main cities that make up our selling market. Our logo will also be on every t-shirt given to volunteers and participants.

Finally, and most importantly, our entire sponsorship fee goes fully to the scholarship fund to ensure more than 50 kids get to experience the camp Chick-Fil-A has put together! All of the other race expenses are covered by Chick-Fil-A!

Like I said, this event ties together so many benefits for our company. It is truly a win-win-win event! The kids win. Our businesses win. God wins.

[box]

Overall Benefits

  • Christ-centered camp
  • Character development and leadership content
  • Underprivileged children being served
  • Employees volunteering and participating
  • Our association with a prominent Christian business (Chick-Fil-A)
  • Money donated along with physical involvement
  • Our business is featured in key markets
  • God is honored

[/box]

Do you see any benefits I left off the list?

Have you had similar opportunities with your business?

What are some other win-win-win ideas you have?

Posted on

What Do Cancer, Children, Car Shows, and Chaplains Have In Common?

by

Just before Christmas this past year, one of our long-term employees took her 14 yr. old son to the doctor to have a knee injury checked out. What they thought was simply swelling turned out to be a mother’s nightmare – a rare form of bone cancer. Obviously, this is a life-changing event. It poses the question: What ministry responsibilities does a Christian company have in responding to this kind of situation?

ministry

Ministry Through Business

Now, I will be the first to tell you that we are not the perfect Christian business. Not even close. There are so many ways we fall short of where we want to be. I am sure we miss ministry opportunities every day.

On the other hand, we give it a lot of effort and I am proud of what God has accomplished in our company over the past eight years. In fact, this blog is an attempt to share some of what He has done to change this company’s focus. So, when a situation comes along that exemplifies this kind of ministry, I feel compelled to share.

Flexible Schedule

First and foremost, we wanted to make sure that this mother had full freedom to be with her son at every possible moment through the medical maze of full diagnosis, planning, and treatment. Though she is in a critical role within our company’s accounting department, we gave her the freedom to effectively set her own schedule.

She worked when she could (occupying her mind) and she was with him whenever she needed to be. In this case, we took Andy Stanley’s advice and did for one what we wish we could do for everyone. While our employee handbook does not exactly deal with this situation, we made sure we gave her every freedom we could. We cannot allow everyone this freedom all the time, but we can bend the rules when we have to.

Employees Engaged

Next, we had several employees step up in various ways from providing gas for her multiple trips to Atlanta (60+ miles each way) to chipping in with her work responsibilities and even helping her set up an account at the local bank for donations toward medical expenses. Everyone did their best to show their support through encouragement and prayers. She has never been in doubt that we were supporting her and her family.

One of the sales departments had the idea of hosting a car show, with the profits going to help out with medical expenses. This idea gained support and that department really put hours of effort into pulling it off. The event drew 60 cars, raised close to $1,500 for their medical expenses, and even served as the capstone to her son’s birthday party!

Chaplain

Finally, and likely most importantly, our company chaplain has been able to give her and her family the spiritual support they need. In addition to his normal support through weekly visits, he has been able to provide focused support for her and her family throughout the process so far.

Yesterday, the chaplain was able to sit with the family as the son went into surgery to remove the tumor from his leg. He was able to pray with them before and after the surgery and to wait with them until the doctor came back with the results. In fact, he was there to hear the doctor report that the surgery went better than expected! It appears that all of the cancer has been removed and that the leg is going to look great and operate normally!

This situation is not completely over for this family. We will need to maintain the support and continue to look for ministry opportunities. Our prayer is that our actions will help to get them through to the other side of this situation with their family intact. We also hope that their faith is strengthened as a result. The main goal is that God gets the credit for all that is done.

Eternal Impact

As far as can tell, there is not a book that specifically addresses how a Christian company is supposed to respond to an employee crisis like this one. I believe we are simply to seek to honor God and love our neighbors as ourselves. Regardless of the crisis, this behavior will have eternal impact!

How has your company responded to similar situations?

Do your employees have the opportunity to engage?

What more could you do next time?

Posted on

2 Simple Ideas For Employee Recognition

by

Recently, I included the following brief message in our monthly employee newsletter. Read the message and then I want to explain how this fits into employee engagement through employee recognition.

employee recognition

From Our Newsletter

    The following is an excerpt from Seth Godin’s blog:

    No organization cares about you. Organizations aren’t capable of this. Your bank, certainly, doesn’t care. Neither does your HMO or even your car dealer. It’s amazing to me that people are surprised to discover this fact.

    What are your thoughts at this point? Do you agree with what he says? Aren’t we part of a dealership “family” that cares about each other and our customers?

    The truth is we are not!

    The truth is (and Seth goes on to say this later in the blog) that only people care. Organizations, companies, and teams are incapable of caring, but the people that make up these groups are the ones that care.

    Here is the difference…if you think and act like the groups are capable of caring, then you are actually attempting to relieve yourself of the responsibility for caring. If everyone else does the same thing, then no one cares.

    If, on the other hand, every individual in the organization takes personal responsibility for caring, then it ends up looking like the entire organization cares.

    It is in this kind of organization that we all prefer to work. It is this kind of organization that draws customers. It is this kind of organization of which we can be proud.

    What about you? Do you care?

Encourage Thinking Outside of Job

This message is one of many that I send in an effort to get our employees thinking outside of just doing their job and going home everyday. I want them seeing the world around them and getting involved…engaged.

Mission and Vision

Our company’s mission is to honor God by impacting the lives of our employees, customers, and community. Our vision statement is “Moving people.” This plays on the transportation theme in our business, but carries a deeper meaning as well.

As people movers, we want to take other employees, customers, as we as those in the community, and “move” them from their current position or circumstances to a better one – whatever that looks like.

Employee Recognition

I also want them to feel like they are a part of something bigger than themselves. Not only does this reduce the likelihood that they will leave to go to work somewhere else, but it also gives them fulfillment that we all so desperately need. A good way to do this is with employee recognition.

In addition to consistent communication through the employee newsletter and other methods, we created a couple of awards to reinforce this idea.

RPM Award

The first is called an RPM (Recognizing People Movers) award. This award recognizes anyone that has shown care for someone else by doing their job exceptionally well and going the extra mile. They are nominated by the other employees. We typically give out four to six of these awards in an average month. All of the award winners each month are put into a random drawing. We give the winner of the drawing a gift card for $100.

One example of a winner of an RPM award was a salesperson that responded quickly to a crisis with a customer. Something went wrong with a scheduled after-hours delivery of a new vehicle to the customer’s home and it did not happen. The problem was that the customer was an elderly lady that had to drive herself to the doctor the next morning. That new car was her only way to get there.

With little time to respond, this salesperson piled her family into the car and delivered the new car to the customer herself. This delivery was over two hours away and happened at 10pm…on her day off!

Lightning Strike

The second award is called a Lightning Strike. This award goes to someone that has shown extraordinary care for someone else. They have done this outside of the normal course of the job…often not even related to their job or our company at all. Each winner of this award gets a $100 gift card.

A notable Lightning Strike winner was a young member of our detail department. My brother received a call from a well-to-do older lady from his church. She asked about this employee by name. She wanted to know if he indeed worked for us. Sensing trouble, my brother answered that he did and then waited for the complaint.

Instead of complaining, she explained that she had been at McDonald’s earlier that morning, had placed her order, and went to pay. That was when she realized she had forgotten her wallet. As she stood there wondering what she was going to do, this employee stepped up and told her he would pay for her breakfast.

The kicker is that this position is an entry level position that is responsible for washing cars and therefore does not earn much money. Also, when the older lady asked the McDonald’s cashier if she knew our employee, she said she did not, but she did know that he had done that same thing on multiple occasions before!

On Track

These two forms of recognition are not all we do, but they do play a role in helping us to get our employees engaged in our mission and vision. As long as I keep hearing stories like these, I will feel we are on track!

Posted on

Are You Willing To Ask For This Employee Feedback?

by

While focused on the issue of Employee Engagement, I ran across some very appropriate advice on the topic from Andy Stanley, Founder and Senior Pastor of North Point Ministries in Alpharetta, GA. In one of his podcasts on leadership, Stanley shared the way his organization values employee feedback. The difference in Stanley’s case is that he targets new hires for their unique perspective.

employee feedback

Automatic Systems

Stanley emphasized that the larger the organization is, the greater the need to build in automatic systems to help the leader stay connected to every employee. Since there is no realistic way for him to get around to every employee on a regular basis for feedback, he has put systems in place that assist him in maintaining high employee engagement in his organization.

Step Four: New Hire Feedback Process

The overall goal of this step is to get new hire employee feedback on the organization while they still have fresh eyes and can clearly see issues others may overlook.

New Hire Employee Feedback Process

One of the systems that Stanley has put in place is the three-month and one-year organization evaluation email to new hires. After three months on the job, and again at their one-year anniversary, every new hire gets an email from Stanley’s office. This email goes out automatically and does not require Stanley to initiate it.

This email gives the employee the opportunity to evaluate the North Point Ministry organization. It is not an employee review and is completely unrelated to the employee’s performance. Instead, it asks the employee to rate the organization and whether it meets, exceeds, or falls short of their expectations.

Every new employee is told about this email during orientation when they first start their job. They are told that they are in a unique position as they have fresh eyes for the organization. They will see things and experience frustrations that more tenured employees no longer see.

Fresh Eyes

I can certainly identify with this point. I have been in our organization for almost 20 years now. Quite simply, I miss a lot because it is too familiar to me. A new hire does not have that handicap. They are able to see things for what they are. They are more likely to be able to point out misaligned processes or unnecessary frustrations that others have simply accepted as the norm.

As new employees at North Point Ministries, they are told that the leadership wants to create an organization that is great for them to work in. If there are processes or policies that make their jobs unnecessarily difficult or keep them from enjoying their job, then the leadership wants to know about it. Only then can the necessary changes be made.

Evaluation Email Questions

Here are some of the key questions in the evaluation emails:

    1. Do you see anything we are doing that is off-mission or off-purpose?

    2. Do you see anything that frustrates you?

    3. Do you have a best friend at work?

    4. Do you have all the tools you need to do your job?

    5. Are you doing what we hired you to do?

These actual email templates are available for free download on my Resources page.

Immediate Implementation

I like this idea so much, I am going to implement it in our organization as quickly as I can. Of course, just like the focus groups, if I get the employee feedback and do not act on it then I am wasting my time and the employee’s time. I am also destroying my credibility with them. I am determined not to let this happen!

While the results from implementing this process may not be immediate, I can truly see how it will bear fruit in the future. I am excited to see it work!

What do you think about this process?

Does your organization get similar employee feedback?

If not, when do you start?

Posted on

Should You Use Employee Surveys?

by

I have been focused on Employee Engagement recently. I have done a lot of research on the subject and I am finding some really good ideas. I fully expect to see some significant improvement in this area in our organization over the next several months. The problem is that I like to measure progress when I am investing this much time, energy, and resources into anything. How exactly am I supposed to measure Employee Engagement? I think one answer lies in employee surveys.

employee surveys

Employee Engagement Series

This is the fourth post in a series I am doing on Employee Engagement. In the first two posts, I described my plan for this series and I told you how I set the stage for my action plan with my employees. In my last post, I laid out my plans for hosting employee focus groups. In this post, I am going to tell you about the next step in my action plan for Employee Engagement – employee surveys.

Step Three: Employee Surveys

The overall goal of this step is to get employee feedback on a wide variety of workplace issues. The results should provide actionable information for improvement.

Jim Reese on Employee Surveys

During a conversation I had recently with Jim Reese, CEO of Atlanta Mission, he brought up the topic of employee surveys. I am familiar with typical employee surveys as one of our franchise manufacturers requires them once a year. However, Reese referred to employee surveys that were focused on employee engagement. This approach is different than I have seen.

Reese told me how he made it one of his first initiatives to survey his employees and volunteers at Atlanta Mission shortly after he arrived on the job. It was his desire to assess the current culture of the organization, find the problem areas that needed to be addressed first, and to establish a baseline for measurement of future progress.

Once his employees were surveyed for the first time, Reese determined what had to be done and which problem areas were most critical. He told us how the results from this first survey allowed him to prioritize his plans. He acted quickly on the major issues and saw clear improvement.

He emphasized that we should act quickly, but not to expect overnight success in all areas. He saw some immediate successes, but he also said he is still working to improve some of the issues revealed on that first survey. It is several years later and Atlanta Mission is still using this employee survey process.

Goals For Employee Surveys

Taking Reese’s goals, and adding one of my own to fit my own plans, I came up with the following goals for this step:

  • Assess the current culture of the organization
  • Find the problem areas that needed to be addressed first
  • Establish a baseline for measurement of future progress
  • Validate feedback gathered during focus groups

Experts with Employee Surveys

Reese put me in touch with another gentleman named Al Lopus. He is CEO of an organization called Best Christian Workplaces Institute (BCWI) which conducts the surveys for Atlanta Mission. When I talked to Lopus, I found that he had decades of experience in creating employee surveys and he seemed to know exactly what I was looking for. I realized I was hearing about the answer to my measurement problem.

Unlike most employee surveys I have seen, the BCWI survey is created with the Christian organization in mind. There is even flexibility to custom-tailor their survey to your specific organization. This is especially helpful since I do not feel our company fits the normal mold in our industry!

There are plenty of options out there for executing employee surveys. You can find turn-key programs and do-it-yourself products, as well as anything in between. I will be using the BCWI product and I will let you know how it goes.

Have you ever done employee surveys in your organization?

What were your successes? What pitfalls did you experience?

Do you see a value in this step of the process?