January 2005

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article was first published in the Eastern Daily Press' 'The Business'  on 7 December 2004</I></div> <bR> <div> <B>Engage in a talent hunt</B></div> <bR> <div> Last month, I talked about playing to your strengths and those of your people.  And I claimed that those businesses who understand their people's talents and who help them play to their strengths consistently achieve superior performance.  There is much evidence of this, but none more broadly-based or persuasive than the work carried out by the Gallup Organisation over more than 25 years.</div> <bR> <div> By interviewing and assessing over two million individuals in many thousands of organisations around the world, the Gallup researchers identified a relatively limited number of talent `themes' which help define the way in which individuals are made up. Such themes as Achiever, Activator, Command, Communication, Competition, Developer, Empathy, Futuristic, Inclusiveness, Learner, Relator, Self Assurance and Strategic are among the 30-odd categories defined.  Their studies show that highly successful managers and leaders seem to understand their own specific talents, and those of their people, better than most, and, by focusing on them and supporting their development, they turn them into real strengths, from which the organisation benefits.  </div> <bR> <div> These innate talents, which can be defined as `any recurring pattern of thought, feeling or behaviour that can be productively applied', are created by the neural pathways that develop rapidly in early childhood and then shrink and are refined as we reach our early to mid-teens.  We can hone these essential qualities into valuable strengths which can lead to greater effectiveness by selectively improving our skills and knowledge in ways that build on a natural talent rather than trying to remedy a weakness.  This is one of the first differences the Gallup researchers noted in their studies of both average and high-performing businesses - in the latter, great managers worked to develop their people's strengths, they didn't try to fix their weaknesses.</div> <bR> <div> Another facet of their work was in identifying the main elements of superior business performance.  Put simply, they are that</div> <bR> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700dc00000000.png" HEIGHT="15" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">sustainable growth drives real profit increase</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700dc00000000.png" HEIGHT="15" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">loyal customers drive sustainable growth</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700dc00000000.png" HEIGHT="15" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">engaged employees drive customer loyalty</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700dc00000000.png" HEIGHT="15" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">the right employees, in the right roles, with the right managers drive employee engagement. </div> <bR> <div> This final point is fundamental to everything else and Gallup discovered four keys that somewhat fly in the face of conventional wisdom that are displayed by great managers:</div> <bR> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700dc00000000.png" HEIGHT="15" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">they select their people for talent, not simply for experience, intelligence or determination</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700dc00000000.png" HEIGHT="15" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">when setting goals for their people, they define the right outcomes, not the right steps</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700dc00000000.png" HEIGHT="15" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">when motivating someone, they focus on strengths, not weaknesses</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700dc00000000.png" HEIGHT="15" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">when developing someone, they help them find the right fit, not simply the next rung on the ladder.</div> <bR> <div> I wrote in October last year about happy employees and the benefits they can bring to a business.  Encouraging people to spend more of their time at work doing those things they are best at is one way of building a more engaged, happier workforce and starting on the road to better business performance.  Next month, we'll look at a few rather unconventional questions that can give you a better idea of just how engaged your people really are.</div> </td> <td valign="top" width=180 BGCOLOR="#CC3333" TEXT="#080000"> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>