Way back in grade 8 I had a teacher who taught me one of the most important lessons I carried forward from school: Keep things simple…start conversations…learning follows. Flash (we called him that because of the rather unique helmet he wore with a lightening bolt across each side during our regular teacher student floor hockey … Continue reading
We all understand the importance of having managers as the key link in the communication process. But, we often struggle when trying to turn the ideal into reality. One of our primary roles as communicators is to ensure that managers are well supported so that they can succeed with what they are asked to accomplish. … Continue reading
Way back in 1977 I was working for a large international organization in an entry-level labour position. I was young and energetic, but I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do with my life. After months of working afternoon and midnight shifts, I began to understand the business. I often thought of what we … Continue reading
Engage me if you can! It’s as easy as A, B, C Note: I wrote this a number of years ago and was asked by a number of people recently for copies – thought it may be worth reposting. (The original was part of an e-book produced by the Employee Engagement Network hosted by David … Continue reading
Four Critical Conversations that Maximize Employee Engagement & Performance The role of managers and supervisors in the employee engagement process is vital. This is something we all know. Recently, a client asked me to outline some of the key conversations that need to occur between managers and supervisors and their teams. The initial list was … Continue reading
See the article at: A New Look at Engagement – Talent Management magazine. Barb Krantz Taylors article in Talent Management Magazine, posted on Oct 21, 2011 provides an excellent look at the importance of engagement and productivity. Of particular interest are the 9 key drivers of engagement she outlines (see her post for the full details … Continue reading
Using the Four Ps to Effectively Communicate with Staff Communicating about change or decisions made can sometimes feel like the most difficult task for a manager or leader. It can seem like no matter what we say or do, the different needs of our staff leave us struggling to get through to them. Our challenge is … Continue reading
Managers often tell me they just don’t have the time to regularly and consistently interact with their staff. While there may certainly be some truth to this, I often wonder if it’s an excuse made by those who are somewhat uncomfortable with the softer side of communication and engagement. Either way, what I do know … Continue reading
A new report from The Economist Intelligence Unit and The Hay Group – Re-engaging with Engagement – offers some extremely insight into the world of engagement from the perspective of the C-Suite. This short summary may well be this quote from the report: A sizeable discrepancy exists between what companies say about the perils of … Continue reading
“What is your favourite “one to five-minute engagement activity that any manager could do?” (If we get enough responses over the next 3 weeks or so I ‘ll pull them together as an e-book) To get us started….her’s one of my favourites: Planned Spontaneity: As you walk, ride or drive to work, think about one person on your … Continue reading
