Building a Strengths-Based Organization AmCham Shanghai Training Committee Meeting April 9, 2007 Scott I. Pollack Partner Gallup China
THE GALLUP ORG...
The ultimate goal of a SBO is to drive business results by maximizing the talent of its people. Each organization will find its own path to building a strengths-based organization. There are guiding principles to help each organization make smart decisions about their unique approach. A large part of the success of SBO depends on the organization’s commitment to sticking as close as possible to the guiding principles.
To test how widespread this answer is, Gallup asked this question around the world: “Which do you think will help you improve the most? Knowing your strengths or knowing your weaknesses?” Percent knowing your strengths 100% 80% 60% 41%
38%
38%
40%
29% 24%
24%
20% 0%
U.S.
UK
Canada
France
Japan
China
Those who choose to focus on their strengths and manage around their weaknesses are a minority in every country in Gallup’s study. THE GALLUP ORGANIZATION
In most organizations, the “weakness-prevention” method looks like this: z
z
z
z
Most organizations define performance by legislating the required competencies. Most organizations focus their training on identifying which competencies an employee lacks and then plugging these gaps. In most organizations, an employee’s “area for improvement” is a euphemism for “area of weakness.” Employees that show growth in their “areas for improvement” are rewarded with a higher rating, a higher bonus, and a higher position.
The “Weakness-Prevention” approach is founded The assumptions of the world’s best on three flawed assumptions:
managers
Some behaviors can be learned. Many prove very hard to learn. All behaviors can&beknowledge) learned. (Talent versus skills The best in a role all create the same outcomes, using different The best in a role all display the same behaviors. behaviors. Weakness-fixing prevents Strengths-building leads to Weakness-fixing leads failure. to success success.
People operating from strength learn the role faster, adapt to more variance in the role faster, and need less complicated systems to do so. People operating from strength produce significantly more at higher quality.
Longevity and Attendance ¾
People operating from strength stay longer, miss less work, and build stronger customer relationships.
CLC Research Supports Strengths Based Approach 40.0
36.4 19,000 interviews in 34 companies and 29 countries
Change in Performance
21.3
Emphasis on Performance Weaknesses
9.1
6.6
5.3
4.2
Emphasis on Personality Weaknesses
0.0 Emphasis on Performance Strengths
Emphasis on Specific Outcomes of Formal Review Emphasis on Personality Strengths
-40.0
Emphasis on Skills and Behaviors Needed in the Future
Emphasis on Specific Suggestions for Doing the Job Better
-5.5
Emphasis on Long-Term Career Prospects
-26.8
Each bar presents a statistical estimate of the maximum total impact on employee performance each strategy will produce. The total impact includes the strategy’s direct impact on performance as well as any indirect impact it may have through employee attitudes. The maximum total impact is calculated by comparing two statistical estimates: the predicted performance level for an employee who scores “high” on the strategy and the predicted performance level for an employee who scores “low” on the strategy. The impact of each strategy is modeled separately.
Source: Corporate Leadership Council 2002 Performance Management Survey.
The World According to TALENT Knowledge is “What you are aware of” Factual Knowledge. “What you know” The rules of double-entry bookkeeping Your products’ features and benefits The appropriate dose of medication
The World According to TALENT Knowledge is “What you are aware of” Experiential Knowledge. “What you have picked up along the way” Whom to call to make things happen Your VALUES Your SELF-AWARENESS
The World According to TALENT Talents are recurring patterns of thought, feeling, or behavior that can be productively applied. Yearnings Rapid Learning Satisfactions Glimpses of Excellence THE GALLUP ORGANIZATION
Four Disciplines to Build a Strengths-Based Organization Discipline 1:
Discipline 2:
Discipline 4:
Hold all managers accountable for the local culture they build.
Teach all employees how to identify and build their strengths.
Maximize each key role.
•Field a short culture metric twice a year. •Deliver to managers within 21 days. •Teach managers and employees how to address each question. •Teach managers and employees how to build local action plans.
•Instill a common language to distinguish the “teachables” from the “unteachables.” •Reveal each person’s strongest and weakest talents. •Teach each person how to develop these talents. •Teach managers how to develop the talents of their teams.
•Identify the talents common to the best in the role. Build a psychometrically sound tool to select for these talents. •Capture the best in the role describing what they do differently. •Build a ladder that leads from good, to great, to world-class. Motivate employees to climb these rungs.