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From HR Magazine, July 2001
A Look in Brief at Books for the HR Profession By Mike Frost
How to Act Like a CEO What sets CEOs apart from other people? Executive development and career consultant Debra A. Benton says CEOs approach their careers differently than the rest of us. In How to Act Like a CEO, Benton identifies behaviors adopted by CEOs in their climb to the top. Benton, who also wrote How to Think Like a CEO, studied such high-profile executives as Apple's Steven Jobs, Danita Hughes of Edgewater Systems and Nabisco's Doug Conant. Benton identifies personal integrity as the most important characteristic of a successful CEO. "How you do your work," she writes, "is more important than what your work is." A commitment to self-improvement is also key. The author advises readers to think of a project where the results were "just okay" instead of "great." Then ask, "How could I have handled it better? What negative impact did I have on people? What do I want to remember when it happens again? What can I do about it now?" Benton details nine other rules to help land you in the executive suite. So certain is she of their universal truth that she wryly suggests you tattoo them on your forearm:
These rules notwithstanding, Benton acknowledges that your ability to make it to the top depends on your own determination. "The difference between good and great," she concludes, "is that you've got to want it...Some people just don't want it enough."
The Executive Handbook on Compensation The evolving economy has prompted employers to reexamine their compensation strategies. Or, at least, it should have. The editors of The Executive Handbook on Compensation point out that while compensation often is an organization's single largest investment, rewards strategies seldom keep up with the times. Edited by Charles Fay, Ph.D., director of Rutgers University's graduate program in HR management, and Hay Group consultants Michael Thompson and Damien Knight, The Executive Handbook on Compensation contains 55 thought-provoking articles on "linking strategic rewards to business performance." In his introduction, Fay identifies the globalization of the economy as the most significant factor in changing the context in which companies think about compensation. He also notes that changes in workplace demographics and human resource management practices have affected rewards strategies. Essays are contributed by HR thought leaders such as David Ulrich and Bruce Ellig, as well as compensation consultants, academicians and HR practitioners. The editors organize the essays into four parts. The first focuses on business and HR strategies; subsequent sections explore reward strategies, reward design and implementation and pay systems. An expansive appendix documents the patented Hay Guide Chart--Profile Method of position evaluation. The writings describe how companies can link their HR goals with their business objectives; reward and retain top performers; determine appropriate pay scales; evaluate employee expectations; boost morale; develop nontraditional compensation models; and use technology to improve the way the evaluate, plan and price jobs. In a chapter examining the role rewards play in shaping commitment and motivation, authors Derek Pritchard, Stephen Watson and Chris Alcock, consultants for the Hay Group in England, recommend employers take a holistic view of compensation. The authors says it's important to consider the following questions:
Designing and Using Organizational Surveys Organizational surveys can provide companies with valuable insight into the thoughts, behaviors and feelings of their employees. In their book Designing and Using Organizational Surveys, Allan Church and Janine Waclawski outline a seven-step process for constructing an effective survey:
2. Design and develop the survey. 3. Communicate objectives. 4. Administer (and, if necessary, improve) the survey. 5. Analyze and interpret results. 6. Deliver the findings. 7. Follow through. The first six steps are tactical in nature, say Church, director organization and management development at PepsiCo in Purchase, N.Y., and Waclawski, a principal consultant in management at PricewaterhouseCoopers in New York City. As such, these steps are critical in ensuring the quality of the survey and that the results are understood by the organization. On the other hand, the authors characterize step seven as "transformational." It's only when an organization follows through with this step -- "when managers and employees take ownership of the findings and make changes happen as a result" -- that a survey can be considered effective. The authors provide checklists for creating a development plan for each of the seven steps. In addition, Designing and Using Organizational Surveys includes a variety of sample documents that can be adapted for use. These include sample memos, questionnaires, cover letters to department heads and explanations of results.
Mediation in the Workplace A workplace mediation program can go a long way towards reducing turnover, increasing job satisfaction, boosting productivity and cutting the number of employment-related lawsuits. Is a mediation program right for your organization? In her book, Mediation in the Workplace, author Rebecca Jane Weinstein says mediation "is a viable option for virtually every workplace." Weinstein, a labor law attorney and social worker, writes that any serious dispute is appropriate for settlement in mediation. Issues that often wind up before a third-party mediator include:
Weinstein says that, for these types of conflicts, mediation is the best way to reach a satisfying resolution, both from the worker's perspective and the employer's. That's because mediators focus on underlying causes and involve all the affected parties. Weinstein explains the two types of mediation -- professional and peer-based. Each approach has its pros and cons. Professionals bring their expertise and experience to the mediation process and can assist employers in areas beyond conflict resolution. On the downside, professional mediators can be expensive (though not as expensive as going to court, Weinstein notes). Peer mediation is less costly and in many ways more satisfying, since employees and managers work together to resolve conflict. However, peer mediation may not be as effective in averting lawsuits. In addition to sections on the theory and practice of mediation and program implementation, Mediation in the Workplace also offers a set of administrative guidelines and mediation exercises, as well as a complete set of policies, procedures and forms, which employers can adapt to fit their needs.
The New SuperLeadership In 1989, Charles Manz and Henry Sims, Jr., introduced the concept of the "SuperLeader." A SuperLeader, they wrote, is "one who leads others to lead themselves." Twelve years later, Manz, a professor of business leadership at the University of Massachusetts, and Sims, a professor of management and organization at the University of Maryland, have resurrected the concept in their book, The New SuperLeadership. What's changed? The authors say the information age has created a complex workplace that changes rapidly and emphasizes autonomous work roles. "The best of all leaders," they write, "is the one who helps people so that eventually they don't need him or her." Among the strategies SuperLeaders adopt are the following:
Manz and Sims provide strategies for developing self-leadership traits, as well as instilling them in others. In addition, The New SuperLeadership offers profiles of executives the authors say embody the SuperLeadership ethos, including Dennis Bakke of AES Corp. and Southwest Airlines' founder Herb Kelleher. In the chapter on "Leading Organizational Cultures to Self-Leadership," Manz and Sims note that human resource systems play an important role in developing SuperLeaders. Decisions about workflow, staffing, performance appraisal and compensation dictate how successful an organization will be in fostering self-leadership. The authors note that a pay system can emphasize "the accomplishment of narrow performance objectives" or "initiative and risk-taking." Training is also an important factor. In the 21st century, Manz and Sims predict, "The top-down, hard-nosed autocrat will become an artifact of history, replaced by leaders who are obsessed with the development of their followers." Copyright © 2001, Society for Human Resource Management |
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MIKE FROST · GOLETA PUBLISHING 3004 Mt. Vernon Avenue Alexandria, Virginia, 22305 Phone: 703/346-3170 · Fax: 603/299-0351 E-mail: mfrost@goletapublishing.com AIM: mikesfrost · YIM: msfrost © 2003, Goleta Publishing, unless otherwise indicated. |