Welcome Veterans Home - With a Job

On this Memorial Day in the United States of America, we remember those who served their country and made the ultimate sacrifice. They weren’t able to reunite with their friends and families to enjoy the rest of their lives. Our veterans who come home should be embraced and thanked for their service. One way we can welcome them back is to hire them into the civilian workplace.

Those who serve weren’t away on vacation. Veterans have trained and worked hard under the auspices of the military. They are seasoned, valuable resources with unique experiences. Hiring managers should consider these “Top 10 Reasons to Hire Veterans”, originally identified in 2010 for “Veterans Today” by Capt. Benjamin Jones (with my commentary added).

1. Accelerated Learning Curve: Veterans are used to learning new things quickly, and putting them into action without fuss. They may have a positive influence on your productivity/

2. Leadership: The military has a strong focus on developing leaders. Veterans also understand how to operate within a organizational leadership structure

3. Teamwork: Where is teamwork more ingrained than within a military troop? Survival may depend upon it.

4. Diversity and Inclusion in Action: Our armed forces are very diverse in race, ethnicity, religion, gender, and geographic origin. They often have experience with and respect for cultures in other parts of the world.

5. Efficient Performance under Pressure: As stressful as your job may be, have you ever had to do it while enemies are dropping bombs on your workplace? Probably not, unless you are a veteran yourself.

6. Respect for Procedures: Our military is famous for documenting and applying SOP, or Standing Operating Procedures. Veterans understand the value of quality control via SOP.

7. Technology and Globalization: Service personnel are usually aware of technical trends and their application in an international, multicultural environment. They may have valuable specialized experience in a technical discipline.

8. Integrity: Many veterans have a trustworthy sense of right and fairness. Sometimes this is supplemented with useful security clearances.

9. Conscious of Health and Safety Standards: Military training provides an awareness of health and safety protocols for self and others, which translates well into the workplace.

10. Triumph over Adversity: Experience in the Armed Forces develops maturity, strength, and determination. Individuals who have served in combat are good at putting petty office politics and distractions in their proper perspective and focusing on important objectives.

If you are a hiring manager, work with your Human Resources representative to insure that Veterans are included in your candidate pool. Take advantage of you opportunities to hire a hero.

Things Your Boss Secretly Hates About You

Hate is such a strong word; but just as you sometimes hate your boss – they hate you back for the annoying, thoughtless, obstructive things you do. Many times, they swallow their most base reactions and don’t tell you about them. If your boss is highly evolved, you may have heard some of these criticisms as feedback or in a counseling session. Assuming that your boss is a reasonable human being and a fairly good supervisor (a big assumption, I know), try to avoid these behavior pitfalls in the workplace:

When the going gets tough, your boss expects to see you exhibit a sense of urgency. Otherwise, they are afraid that you don’t “get it”. That important assignment with a time deadline requires you to scurry/make haste/haul ass. Why are you still standing there?

Please don’t put your future entirely in your boss’s hands, expecting them to orchestrate your career. You must articulate your own career goals. Your boss is neither your parent nor your guidance counselor. Stop looking at them with those big, trusting eyes. Carve out your own career and ask for the help they can reasonably provide to achieve the goals you have defined for yourself.

Hard and competent work will lead to rewards. When promoted, the last thing you can allow yourself is to take on an “I’ve Arrived” attitude and downshift to a lower gear. Learn that you must keep working hard to maintain your position and your reputation. Otherwise, you have proven to your boss that they made a mistake in judgment about you.

It can be valuable to offer a “Devil’s Advocate” perspective on a proposed approach to solving a problem. But nobody likes a constant hole-poker. Bring ideas and solutions to the table, not just more problems.

Your boss is often your mentor too. When you don’t appreciate that and verbalize your thanks, your boss wonders if their efforts are just trickling down a rat hole. That makes them wonder why they try.

A last bit of advice… Keep asking how you can work on your weaknesses. You may actually get some good advice.

If you liked this posting, you may also be interested in: Get Past the Hate.  It includes constructive ideas about how to improve relations with your boss.

Champion Golfers are like Successful Executives

K.J. Choi won the Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass yesterday, coming from behind to defeat David Toms in a sudden death playoff. Graeme McDowell, who had been leading at the beginning of the day, faltered badly and ended up tied for 33rd.

Watching the tournament on TV was entertaining. The field was very competitive, with numerous pros within reach of the win. The course at TPC Sawgrass is a brutal challenge, laced with water hazards, insidious little pothole bunkers, and dastardly-sloped greens. The elite golfers were not immune to sending balls crashing through foliage or splashing into water. As good as they are, they still succumb to some of the same challenges we have as amateurs.  Don't you just love that? 

The attributes that champion golfers exhibit would serve them well should they decide to make a switch to a corporate boardroom. Perhaps that’s why so much business is done on the golf course…

SKILL IS ESSENTIAL: Some are natural-born golfers/leaders. Everyone has to hone their skills to be successful in the long term.

BE PREPARED: Golfers practice, work with coaches, collaborate with their caddies, and continue to develop their skills between tournaments. Preparation is a key to success in the corporate world. It fosters consistency, stability, and trust.

PERSISTENCE PAYS: K.J. Choi lurked one stroke behind David Toms for much of the final round of the Players Championship. He was in position to take advantage of a misstep by Toms to win the whole tournament. A flash of brilliance rarely wins the day – it takes focus and persistence to be a consistent winner in life.

VISUALIZE YOUR GOAL: If you don’t know where you are going, you won’t know when you get there. Golfers always shoot to a target. Executives must have specific goals.

PLAY BY THE RULES: Golf has an extensive and detailed rule book. You must know and adhere to the rules, or face costly penalties. Some rules in business are less clear, but breaking rules in a corporate environment can get you fired, or even prosecuted and sent to jail. (Ask Raj Rajaratnam.)

MOVE ON FROM MISTAKES: The landscape on a golf course offers many opportunities to make bad shots. A golfer must be able to recover and move on to the next shot and the next hole. Executives make honest mistakes too, and must be able to regroup, learn from their mistakes, and move forward.

STYLE & CHARISMA COUNT: The media was clearly enamored with Graeme McDowell’s ease and charm during interviews. As a result, they treated him kindly when he lost his command of the lead on Sunday. Relationships matter.

If you enjoyed this post, you may also like:
http://habaconsulting.blogspot.com/2010/08/arnold-palmers-etiquette-wisdom.html

Examine Your Ethics

Last night on TV I watched a grown man cry because he was faced with a professional challenge that violated his personal ethics. (Yes, I’ve been watching Celebrity Apprentice again. Blush.) In the most recent challenge, the candidates were given a charity fund-raising challenge. All the money would go to the winning project leader’s charity – not to the individual charities of each fundraiser.

This challenge didn’t sit well with project manager and famous rocker and actor Meat Loaf. He was beside himself emotionally, struggling with the idea that he was calling in favors to raise money that might not go to his charity. Meat Loaf asked Trump to change the rules, but was rebuffed and told that the show was about winning and if he won the challenge, he would get the money.*

This episode and Meat Loaf’s ethical dilemma made me think about personal ethics in a work environment. How often are corporate employees asked to do something that they know is wrong? Do you know where and how to draw the line and avoid violating your personal ethics? Most established companies have an official ethics policy, but in some circumstances there are gray areas subject to interpretation. In other cases, violations of ethics are perpetrated by senior executives. It’s not easy to say no when your job may be at risk. So what do you do?

1. CLEAR UP POSSIBLE MISUNDERSTANDING: You could be misinterpreting what you are being asked to do. Ask specific and probing questions to insure you have a clear picture of what is being asked of you.

2. SUGGEST AN ALTERNATIVE PATH: Recommend another option for action that avoids the ethical issue.

3. COMMUNICATE YOUR DISCOMFORT: In a calm, professional, and straightforward manner, explain to your boss what is making you uncomfortable. If you can reference your company’s ethics policy in a specific way – do so. Do this with a “help me understand” attitude.

4. RESPECTFULLY REFUSE: You can refuse to do wrong. This takes guts, but your unscrupulous boss may back down if you stand firm.

5. ASK FOR HELP: If you are sure you are being asked to do something unethical, and your immediate supervisor is unresponsive to your concerns – go over their head to upper management or to Human Resources for help.

6. LOOK FOR ANOTHER POSITION: If you are working for a supervisor or a company that is proving to be unprincipled, you may need to move on to protect yourself and be happy.

7. TAKE LEGAL ACTION: This is, of course, a last resort. It’s a lengthy and expensive road – but could be necessary depending on the stakes involved.

At some point in a long career, you will face ethical challenges. Stay true to your own standards, and you can avoid losing sleep over uncertainty and regret.

*How did Celebrity Apprentice end? First, another candidate (country star John Rich) promised to personally contribute the donations “lost” to Meat Loaf’s charity if his team fell short in the competition. That was an amazing act of generosity. Second, Meat Loaf’s team won, so he gained $190,000 to give to his charity.

The Lucrative Mystique of Successful Brands

What makes a brand wildly successful? Generating passion about what the brand has to offer. Collecting customers who are willing to reach into their wallets repeatedly to pay a premium to associate themselves more closely with their preferred brands. These ambassadors influence their friends to get on the “brandwagon” with them. Collectively, they create a buzz that is an important element of the brand mystique. But what do companies do that generates this type of long-term loyalty?

OFFER GROUND-BREAKING GOODS

When you have great products, customers will stand in line to spend their hard-earned money. - Think Apple

KEEP THINGS FRESH

However good you are, you can never stand still. Always work on being better and more innovative. - Think Starbucks

MAKE IT PERSONAL

Tap people’s emotions, dreams, and sense of belonging to a tribe. - Think Harley Davidson

LEAD – DON’T FOLLOW

Your competitors should be chasing you, left in the wake of your creativity and inventiveness. - Think Westin (and their Heavenly Bed)

GROW!

Capitalize on your strengths to expand your offerings and create more revenue opportunities. - Think Amazon

ENGAGE YOUR CUSTOMERS

Use and actively manage all possible avenues that allow you to create dialogues and connections with your fans, such as Facebook, Twitter, You Tube, Smart Phone Apps, your Web Site, and (of course) Customer Service. - Think Zappos.com

BE RESPONSIBLE

More and more, companies are expected to be socially conscious. Pick high-visibility causes and projects that speak to your demographic and do good work. - Think Seventh Generation