Do you believe in employee engagement? What do you believe about employee engagement? Have you taken the time to articulate your beliefs? Are you willing to write down your beliefs and ensure those beliefs are your core beliefs?

Valuable exercise. I believe this is a very valuable exercise. Bob Sutton has taken the thought and time to articulate what he believes about management and organizations. I encourage you to do this for your view of employee engagement, leadership, management, or the workplace.

Bob Sutton. Bob Sutton is a wonderful writer and blogger. His work ranges from The No Asshole Rule (a remarkable book creating a better and more respectful workplace) to The Knowing-Doing Gap. I continue to learn so much from Bob every time I read his books or blog.

Bob site. To follow Bob’s blog, click here or click on the screen shot of his blog below:

Bob Sutton’s 15 Beliefs:

Sometimes the best management is no management at all — first do no harm!

Indifference is as important as passion.

In organizational life, you can have influence over others or you can have freedom from others, but you can’t have both at the same time.

Saying smart things and giving smart answers are important. Learning to listen to others and to ask smart questions is more important.

Learn how to fight as if you are right and listen as if you are wrong: It helps you develop strong opinions that are weakly held.

You get what you expect from people. This is especially true when it comes to selfish behavior; unvarnished self-interest is a learned social norm, not an unwavering feature of human behavior.

Getting a little power can turn you into an insensitive self-centered jerk.

Avoid pompous jerks whenever possible. They not only can make you feel bad about yourself, chances are that you will eventually start acting like them.

The best test of a person’s character is how he or she treats those with less power.

The best single question for testing an organization’s character is: What happens when people make mistakes?

The best people and organizations have the attitude of wisdom: The courage to act on what they know right now and the humility to change course when they find better evidence.

The quest for management magic and breakthrough ideas is overrated; being a master of the obvious is underrate

Err on the side of optimism and positive energy in all things.

It is good to ask yourself, do I have enough? Do you really need more money, power, prestige, or stuf

Jim Maloney is right: Work is an overrated activity

Thanks Bob Sutton for letting me reprint your beliefs at this site.

Your beliefs. To get you started on a framework to articulate your beliefs I encourage you to mull over Bob’s beliefs and visit the website: This I believe.

What about you? What are your beliefs? Within a month, I will be launching an new initiative to articulate and state your beliefs  at the employee engagement network.

My beliefs. Tomorrow, in the next post at this site, I will articulate my beliefs about employee engagement.

To listed to this enlightening hour, click here.

• WSJ: Are you a Amafessional? Amateurs rival professionals in opportunity, talent & producing quality work.  By E. Kinney Zalesne http://bit.ly/3iX0td
• Go 4 It. The Four Conversations: Communication That Gets Results reviewed by Lisa Haneberg http://bit.ly/43J6dI
• Learning from Athletes and Co-pilots By Frode Heimen, I love checklists too. http://bit.ly/3HkVq9
• Jessica Hagy. Business intersects with artistry chart. http://bit.ly/tUsHT
• Inspiring video. Engage with The Power of One. Thanks to @bfederman http://bit.ly/1CFzSjabout
• Love it. I love lunch…improv everywhere musical on lunch. http://bit.ly/2zfNLY
• Life in six words. “a great man is one sentence” http://bit.ly/eKX3Iabout
  
• Gallup on Next Generation of Leadership – State of Mind. http://bit.ly/10PBvq
• Leaders learn “states of mind – will to work, will to live, will to revolt, will to follow you.” http://bit.ly/1FT9nO
• Broken Recognition. Avoid Recognition Breakage. ~ Peter W. Hart http://bit.ly/CbaGp
• SHOPTIMISM review. http://bit.ly/1fjqfy
• Personal. David Zinger collection of writing at Joyful Jubilant Learning. Join Us. http://bit.ly/1PcUSP
• David Zinger interviewed by Zane Safrit on  Employee Engagement. http://bit.ly/dcnK7

I trust you will enjoy some of these fantastic sources and resources of information.

1. WORK. Why you are not ready to find a new job even when you say you are ~ Scot Herrick http://bit.ly/1G24yZ

2. Very Funny. “The The Impotence of Proofreading,” by Taylor Mau. http://bit.ly/3J3YRN

3. GIVE THANKS. Sherri Fisher. Wonderful Article. Thanks to Gratitude! http://bit.ly/1qH7Bl

4. ASK. Dick Richard’s story. Ask for a house…you just might get two houses. http://bit.ly/3M8S3z

5. Everyone is not Somone. Who is your someone? http://bit.ly/9627r

6. 525 Slides from Tom Peters. His Mini Master. Add pop to your thinking. http://bit.ly/4m28Bi

7. Check out the TED blog — very active with insightful presentations. http://bit.ly/Ncyu7

8. Employer Branding to Empower Recruiting and Retention — Sue Schaefer and Sue Wyman http://bit.ly/30eCV92

9. Nick Vitalari on 12 Critical Success Factors for Business Platforms http://bit.ly/ImafW

10. 1 Page Fact Sheet on Australia’s Management Matters Work. http://bit.ly/35tuH8

11. MANAGEMENT MATTERS. Free PDF of Australia’s 42 page Manage Matters Report. http://bit.ly/1e0p1i

12. Peter Bregman guides us: When Should You Let an Employee Make a Mistake? http://bit.ly/4qg5oU

13. Employee Engagement Streaks – 2632 Consecutive games – Be Ready & Add Value Everyday. http://bit.ly/pqtv

Not a fan. First off, I want to own that I am not a big fan of using sports analogies or examples to create engagement in the workplace. I think we often have too much “rah rah” motivational stuff leaving us feeling more depleted than motivated.

A long drive. A few weeks ago, I had to drive about 4 hours across the open Canadian prairies so I went to the library and looked for a book CD to listen to during the drive. There wasn’t much selection so I finally grabbed a book by Cal Ripken, Jr., Get in the Game: 8 Elements of Perseverance That Make The Difference.

2632 Consecutive games. As a long standing Blue Jay’s fan I wasn’t sure I really wanted to read  about a lifetime Baltimore Oriole but there wasn’t much available and  Ripken played in 2632 consecutive games. A huge record compared to all other baseball players through the history of baseball. I  thought there might be some nuggets for employee engagement from someone who showed up and did so well day after day after day.

From reluctance to hearty endorsement. I went from reluctance to  hearty endorsement of the book. Ripken was an engaged baseball player who showed up ready to play everyday and did play for 2632 games in a row. We can learn a lot from him about engagement. He went way above and beyond what was required. I was inspired and informed as I learned how he approached his work — learning everyday about the game and even calling pitches in many games from the shortstop position…something that is never really done in baseball.

Ripken’s philosophy. I encourage you to read his book and I found his overall philosophy very helpful:

Before every game, I asked myself, “What can I do to help us win this particular day?” I took it one day at a time and made sure I was always prepared. Preparation makes you consistent. Consistency increases your value and makes you irreplaceable. And then you’re always in the game. (p.102)

7 Questions. Here are 7 questions for you based on Ripken’s quote:

1. How do you help your organization “win” every day.
2. Can you focus on your job one day at a time.
3. Are your prepared to work everyday mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
4. Does your preparation contribute to daily consistency?
5. Are you adding value to your group, team, department, organization in every way you can?
6. Are you irreplaceable?
7. Are you in the game?

I search over 450 blogs so you don’t have to. Here are some gems I uncovered in the plethora of information available.  I bold little snippets that I think are especially good.

1. Read the master, Jerry, on workplace positive reinforcement. http://bit.ly/F4LlJ

2. GET THE HAPPINESS QUOTE. J. D. Meier with a plethora of happiness quotations. Great collection. http://bit.ly/3TRqks

3. VIDEO: Recession Thoughts from Tom Peters – On Lending Officers and The World of Finance http://bit.ly/2lt0NT

4. Tom Peter’s newest book is coming – The Little BIG Things: 163 Ways to Pursue Excellence. http://bit.ly/38LgLU

5. TILT. Eric Klein encourages us to lean into our discomfort. http://bit.ly/3Z2aOP

6. RAOKA. Random Acts of Kick Arse Kindness. Get the kick of kindness. http://bit.ly/3kXbro

7. BOUNCE. Eight Tips for Feeling More Energetic ~ GretchenRubin http://bit.ly/3vuN0o

8. Hugh MacLeod grounded by a blackberry. http://bit.ly/3P0T8J

9. Nick Morgan’s: 4 Steps to authenticity and charisma in Trust Me. http://bit.ly/1at2Sm

10. Branded. How Credible is Your Personal Brand? ~ Pete Kistler. http://bit.ly/3Gq9zG

11. Very active Thursday at the free and freeing Employee Engagement Network. http://bit.ly/2sDbbj

12. Overturned. Today at Work Cartoon on goals and replays by @junson. http://bit.ly/rKCXH

13. Zane Safrit & David Zinger in engaged conversation Friday 9:30 a.m. Central time. http://bit.ly/2ROESR

14. 76 Videos are now posted relating to employee engagement. And very few talking heads! http://bit.ly/AGS6v

Upcoming Radio Show Guest: David Zinger, founder of Employee Engagement community

By Zane Safrit:

David Zinger joins us Friday, November 6 at 9:30 AM, Central to talk about creating engaged employees. David is a leading expert on employee engagement and strength based leadership. David founded the Employee Engagement community on Ning and it has grown to over 1400 1600+ members whose common passion and expertise for creating engaged employees make it a lively and useful community. He is a management consultant with over 25 years of experience.

David was a previous guest on the show in 2008. You can listen in streaming on-demand mode at this link.

David was also such a delight, generated such positive reviews, that I asked if he’d come back to the show. Fortunately, he agreed. We’ll revisit the previous year to discuss the changes in field of employee engagement, what impact this economy has had on companies looking to create an engaged employee, what are the new tools and resources available, the Employee Engagement community and how David uses social media to further his purpose and how companies are using it to create engaged employees.

Click here to go Zane’s original article and get the links to listen to this live or later.

Here are 19 recent powerful and poignant links and lessons for employee engagement and the workplace:

1. Practice Radical Brevity. Tim Sanders. http://bit.ly/3pk7d4
2. 7 lessons from marketing for HR. (i.e. Design and Brand Matters) http://bit.ly/43wBsp
3. Wash Your Hands. Seth Godin – The Data Decision Collison. http://bit.ly/ZmKEx
4. Intersection of good design Venn beauty, usefulness, and durability come together. http://bit.ly/9OYWC
5. David Henderson. Wonderful cups of coffee idea. Pour out the recognition. http://bit.ly/74eqt
6. Get the picture. Feature creep cartoon on pumpkin work…Tom Fishburne http://bit.ly/2zca6i
7. Get aligned. Closing The Alignment Gap Between Strategy and Operations By Skip Reardon http://bit.ly/3p739c
8. James Bennett from Melcrum ~ Leadership 2.0: 10 ways a CEO should communicate to employees. http://bit.ly/1bfBQo
9. Now Your IWA – Inner Whining Artist. Mark McGuinness http://bit.ly/4cPtYI
10. Unforced Errors. Lisa Haneberg reviews. Why Some Managers Get Promoted While Others Get Eliminated http://bit.ly/2pb82e
11. Amanda Horne – Enliven your marriage – Tidbits from great researcher Gottman on the Art & Science of Love http://bit.ly/10Np32
12. Phil Gerbyshak stopped slacking…management on the move. http://bit.ly/2g4nnF
13. Tony Morgan 10 Reasons why you will probably fail. http://bit.ly/1h3Hui
14. Building Accountability for Employee Engagement By Abhishek http://bit.ly/32yy4G
15. Wake Up. 50 People – 1 Question. Brooklyn. Well composed and engaging video. http://bit.ly/HrftN
16. John Hunter wrote about another great management thinker who is now deceased – Russell L. Ackoff: 1919 -2009 http://bit.ly/27pdqf
17. Chris Bailey – Business Anthropology. Get a fresh perspective. http://bit.ly/1kdwEZ
18. Bite this Apple. 18 Great slides on how to present like Stephen Jobs. http://bit.ly/1qj6gR
19. Put compassion on your home page. Watch the Charter of Compassion video. http://bit.ly/rWYs8

Embedded Inside TRUST

Don’t Strut,

Don’t Rust,

Don’t Rut,

Just Trust Us.

1. Bob Sutton teaches us great organizational lessons from the death of alpha male baboons. http://bit.ly/20xaJq

2. Effective slide show on social media and employee engagement  (bicycle learning) http://bit.ly/cfj7x

3. Towards Positive Relationships with Workplace Bullies ~ Catherine Mattice http://bit.ly/3NS3Ga

4. Alison Esse: Learning Gems from a steel manufacturing CEO. -> BE SEEN. http://bit.ly/34J64K

5. HERO – 3 Stories for Improving Your Thinking, Feeling, and Doing By JD (Sources of Insight) http://bit.ly/3FoaxR

6. HBR: 6 Social Media Trends for 2010 by David Armano http://bit.ly/26aW19

7. HBR – Friedman’s pithy: 3 Reasons Bruce Springstein is the best boss. http://bit.ly/41Bf4V

8. Tom Peters Shouts out excellence on 168 colorful PowerPoint slides. http://bit.ly/2vZNI6

9. TALKING STORY. Another rose from Rosa. 12 possibilities towards guilt free self-leadership. http://bit.ly/3qrnJO

10. Pause…view the white sock by Elizabeth Perry…pick up sock and carry on. http://bit.ly/YubAt

11. Jodee Bock on authenticity. What is it really? http://bit.ly/v4365

12. Patti Digh on mindful monday…cease thinking for a bit. http://bit.ly/1IyiL6

13. Social media and employee engagement slide show. http://bit.ly/4a6UbQ

14. Confession of a writer failing to see the obvious, by David Zinger. http://bit.ly/306mVb

15. Tuesday Nov 3 – Latest employee engagement news posted. http://bit.ly/GAvJRabout

16. The Charter of Compassion. Will it be helpful for employee engagement? http://bit.ly/1kYgoT

When it comes to social media strategy

like most companies,

we’re building the bicycle while we ride it.

~ 3MJane

If you’re interested in more, you can replay the original webinar in its entirety at the following link: http://bit.ly/MnV1A

Engage. CARE ends with the E of engage. We so often talk about “engagement” and substitute the verb of working (engage)  for a static noun (engagement). Engage focuses on the actions of engagement. Engagement is not a one time survey measure or a steady state. To engage is to fully experience and contribute to the dynamic elements of work.

Edna Larkin wrote a short and effective piece on employee engagement at Hospitality Net.  I appreciated the workshop vignette she wrote about:

An interesting incident occurred during a workshop which I recently delivered for employees working in a busy hotel. During an ideas session on how to improve business performance, one talented, but extremely de-motivated employee, surprisingly suggested several positive things which would make a difference. When later asked why he had not previously told his manager about these ideas, his response was fairly blunt, but very revealing: “I don’t get paid from the neck up”.

Larkin has identified a number of “C” drives of engagement for leaders in the hotel industry:

• • Culture
  • Composition
  • Clarity
  • Competence
  • Cooperation
  • Control
  • Communication
  • Challenge
  • Conflict
  • Compensation
  • Change

Click here to read the original post on the challenge of employee engagement.

On November 12th. the  Charter of Compassion will be released. To learn more click here.

What do you see as the role of compassion in employee engagement?

Watch this short video on the work done to date:

CHARTER FOR COMPASSION TRAILER from TED Prize on Vimeo.

Here are some top blog posts and resources for the week:

1. Bridget Grenville-Cleave on How to Create Strong Bonds in the Workplace http://bit.ly/38o8J7
2. The Jungle of Life focused on the poem: Little Things. Not so little. http://bit.ly/Jlknh

3. Kick off November with some humor. Laugh Lines from New York Times Blog. http://bit.ly/43YrTi

4. How to Create Clarity Amidst Uncertainty By John Baldoni http://bit.ly/4jrUhw

5. Dave Pollard on How to Save the World is an exceptional blog. Take some time here for sure. http://bit.ly/2y1s4k

6. Scot Herricik: The single best phrase to hear from your manager in your performance review http://bit.ly/368GKW

7. Pardon me are you game for The “No Interruptions” Experiment By Cali & Jody http://bit.ly/3zhVHk

8. Find self-awareness: I Am Just Like You By Bob Sutton on Evidence-based Management http://bit.ly/4oyA55

9. Just say no to Adultitis review by Curt Rosengren on being a kid http://bit.ly/1ClYh1

10. Mark Vernon on What’s your philosophy type? http://bit.ly/Abvux

11. Check your email: The Project Management Tip You Can’t Ignore by Tom Kuhlmann http://bit.ly/z5hac

12. What do you want from Servant Leadership Blog: Vision Questions Tom Jablonski http://bit.ly/HjPJD

13. Peter Drucker – 2 Management Keys for Employee Engagement. http://bit.ly/1wAQuL

14. Latest version of the Zinger Employee Engagement Model. http://bit.ly/41YIhJ

Management should be a profession, and executives and managers should remember that their primary job is to look out for the long-term health of their organizations. That means looking outside their walls at society and taking responsibility for well-being, not just wealth.

Knowledge workers cannot be controlled; they must be motivated. Such employees must see a purpose more meaningful than personal profit. When the game is only about money, disparities in society get worse as the favored grab the largest share.

How are you managing employee engagement?

Why employee engagement and why now?

Work has changed. Command and control are archaic and
motivation is too anemic. Employee engagement is the most
robust and beneficial approach to get results in the age of
co-created work and conversation. It transcends being an HR
buzzword to creating powerful connections between all parts
of the organization and results.

Who works with you and why do they work with you?

My clients range from Investor’s Group, Convergys, and the
Insurance Corporation of British Columbia to The Physiotherapist’s
Association of Manitoba and the Winnipeg Regional
Health Authority. In addition, I Chaired the Second Annual
Employee Engagement Conference in Barcelona Spain in
2009. These organizations work with me to learn leading-edge
insights and approaches. I speak the language of organizations,
meaning, community, humor, story, and results.

What do you offer?

I offer powerful result-focused and person-centered customized
speaking, education, coaching, and consulting services to
meet the pressing needs of each client.

What is the future of employee engagement?

The future is now as we move beyond surveys and simple
techniques to integrating employee engagement into all facets
of the organization’s approach to serving customers and creating
results. To sustain engagement initiatives, employees must
experience the rich benefits of engagement for themselves.

What do you recommend as the next step?

I invite everyone to:

• Read the over 850 free blog posts at my website – this
• site has already had over 2,300,000 hits in 2009.
• Join the global 1650 member Employee Engagement Network.
• Study the Zinger Employee Engagement Model

For a one page PDF of this interview click the image below or click here.

Contact me today by E-mail at dzinger@shaw.ca or phone
(204) 254-2130 and take the next step to create full and
authentic employee engagement for the benefit of all.

Connection is part of the center of the Zinger Employee Engagement Model. Click here to see the full model and explanation.

Connect. A central key of employee engagement is connection. In some ways connection is synonymous with engagement. How well are employees connected to the other elements of engagement ranging from their organization to genuine happiness? Connect starts the central keys of CARE embedded in the employee engagement model.

It is my honor to offer members of the employee engagement network and readers of this site a free copy of Michael Stallard’s 250 page book:  Fired Up or Burned Out: How to Reignite Your Team’s Passion, Creativity, and Productivity.

I think this is one of the top 10 books in the whole field of employee engagement.

Click the book or link below to get the PDF version of the book.

Fired Up or Burned Out PDF Book

I have to admit that the cover and title did not grab my attention but when I started the book, I could not stop and was enthralled by the focus on connection — creating an environment where people feel connected to one another, to their work, and to the larger mission of the organization.

David Zinger Interviews Michael Stallard:

Interview reprint. Here is a reprint of an interview I conducted with Michael January 21, 2008 shortly after the book first appeared:

Michael, thank you for agreeing to this interview about employee engagement and your book, Fired Up or Burned Out: How to Reignite Your Team’s Passion, Creativity, and Productivity.

Q: Can you share with the readers why you decided to write this book at this time?

A: I discovered something that I thought would be valuable to everyone who works in organizations.  It all began when I was chief marketing officer for the private wealth management group at Morgan Stanley.  During that time, I was interested in motivating the team I led and in improving the client experience by firing up people on the front lines who worked directly with clients.  I knew that culture mattered.  As a former investment banker, I had observed great and not so great company cultures.  My experiences and research led me to believe that the only culture that produces sustainable superior performance is a “Connection Culture” in which people feel connected to their work, their colleagues and their organization.

Q: When I picked up the book I thought it was going to be full of motivational platitudes and team trick’s for leaders. It wasn’t that at all. It was about authentic and genuine connection to others, our work, and our organization. What does connection mean to you Michael?

A: Connections are part rational and part emotional. It’s the emotional aspect that’s so powerful.  When people feel connected, it’s extraordinary what they can accomplish together. All great leaders create Connection Cultures.  In Fired Up or Burned Out, we tell the stories of some of these leaders of nations, businesses, sports teams and social sector organizations. We also include a few stories of people who did not lead well so readers can learn from their examples as well

Q: Can you give us an example of someone who really connected with you at work and made a difference?

A: John Straus, former head of the private wealth management group and my first boss at Morgan Stanley, was great at connecting with me and I in turn felt a strong bond with my management team colleagues and with the people in the marketing department I was responsible for leading.  John gave me the authority, resources and autonomy necessary to get the job done.  We had a strong Connection Culture, it fired us up and as a result we doubled Morgan Stanley’s private wealth management business over a two and a half year period.

Q: Who are you working at connecting with currently?

A: First of all, I’m always mindful of staying connected with my family members and friends.  I meet each Saturday morning for breakfast with a group of good friends.  I also meet most Wednesdays with a different group of guys for lunch.  Being around these friends energizes, challenges and encourages me.   I’m also actively connecting with people at our client companies and the non-profit organizations I’m involved in.  Because I’m an “achievaholic,” I wasn’t intentional about connecting with people in the past. I had deadlines to meett and deals to close. Now I am intentional about connecting and it’s made me happier and more satisfied with my life as well as more creative and more productive.

Q: Your book is full of powerful stories, experiences, and examples. What do you most hope the reader takes away from this book you wrote with Carolyn Dewing-Hommes and Jason Pankau?

A: We want people to understand the tremendous effect connection can have, individually and for the organization, and become intentional about connecting with co-workers, family and friends.  I believe that achievaholism is widespread today and it’s sucking the life out of people.  We need to connect with other human beings and when we don’t, there is a price to be paid.  Absent connections, our physical and mental health suffer.  With abundant connections, we thrive.  Life at work can be as satisfying as life outside of work if we create Connection Cultures.

Q: Can you explain what you mean by Knowledge Flow in the book?

A: Knowledge Flow is one of the key elements of a Connection Culture.  It exists when people freely share information, ideas and opinions.  In cultures with a high degree of Knowledge Flow, people feel their opinions are sought and considered.  They feel valued and more engaged because of this.  A high degree of Knowledge Flow also creates a robust marketplace of ideas that fuels innovation and helps decision makers become better informed and therefore make superior decisions.

Q: In Part 4 of the book you profile 20 great leaders from a variety of times and settings. Can you mention one leader from this section and one thing you learned by studying that leader?

A: This may surprise you but I think Warren Buffett is a great leader although most people don’t think of him in that way.  When you study him closely and meet him, as I have, you see that he embodies a passion for excellence in business and he cares for people.  It’s this combination in a leader that brings about both task excellence and relationship excellence in organizational cultures.  Buffett is confident but not at all egotistical.  He is driven to build something great rather than be the center of attention.  Of course, he gets a lot of attention but he doesn’t seem to seek it.  His passion is building Berkshire Hathaway and doing so in a way that’s fair, honest and good for society at large.

Q: Michael, you are very open about what you learned at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City in 2004 as your wife went through cancer treatment. How did that influence your views of work and how is your wife, Katie, today?

A: My wife was diagnosed with breast cancer in late 2002 and advanced ovarian cancer in 2004.  Today, she is in remission and feeling fine.  The Connection Culture we experienced at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York City made us feel that we were more than just a number.  The doctors and staff cared for us and we could see they cared for each other and for their cause, which is “to provide the best cancer care, anywhere.”  The place had a great buzz of positive energy and it’s one of the leading cancer centers in the world.  Watching them opened my eyes to the power of connection.  Furthermore, the extraordinary support we received from friends and family members was enlightening to me.  Amazon.com just published the story I wrote about it entitled “Alone No Longer.”  It was a life-changing event for me that led me to dedicate my life to increasing connection in the workplace and in society.

Thank you Michael.

When did it become
the way of work
to hate
our work
our organization
and our peers?

The daily distaste for work
crumbled our contributions
into gritty crumbs
lacking nourishment
for body, soul, and self.

Is this what we get paid for?