I think everyone has seen the trailer to a scary film, where the dark music plays and you just know that at any second, something very frightening is going to jump out and startle you! Do you have those moments in HR? I do! My heart sinks every time I see mail on my desk from the EEOC, because chances are, they aren’t sending me a letter to wish me a good day! Checkout our podcast below with Matthew Floyd:
I feel the same way about Performance Review season….the time of year sneaks up on me, and before I know it, I am begging managers to help employees create SMART goals and evaluate them on their performance the previous year!
I have amazingly well-intentioned managers and supervisors. They truly want what is best for their employees, but to say they are over worked would be an understatement. They don’t want to put up with what is certainly viewed as another HR Initiative, nor quite frankly do they see the value or the purpose in participating. So, I beg, and I chase them down and we get it done…..and I brace for the mid-year reviews! Anyone else feel this way?
What if we could blow up Performance Appraisals as we know them and create something that is both valuable to the business and meaningful to the employee. What if we really created a culture based on the strengths of the employees and capitalized on them to perform the work that the business needs! The paradigm shift I am describing is that of a Strengths Based Culture.
A strength is a combination of high appetite and high aptitude to do something. This culture shift finds ways to increase the amount of time that employees spend in their strengths! It also helps build and leverage the relationship between the team member and the team leader and provides a framework for handling performance issues before they become a problem. Isn’t that what we are after? Listen this week for more information on what a Strengths Based Culture is and see how it helped transform a workplace! Also find some helpful links below to learn more!
https://www.gallup.com/workplace/247514/strengths-based-culture.aspx
https://www.gallup.com/workplace/243827/cliftonstrengths-metaanalysis-2018-effects-34-feedback.aspx
Books on the Topic:
StandOut 2.0: Assess Your Strengths, Find Your Edge, Win at Work by: Marcus Buckingham