Archive for the ‘Business Trends’ Category
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7
Oct
2009
Customizing the Healthy Workplace
Here is blog entry that I think is worth reading. It’s about providing a psychologically healthy workplace.
http://www.phwa.org/resources/goodcompany/blog/2009/10/faulty-assumptions-in-creating.php
In case you’re wondering what is meant by “psychologically healthy workplace” - click here for an overview: http://www.phwa.org/resources/creatingahealthyworkplace/
23
Sep
2009
Time Off and Performance
This Wall Street Journal article is an interesting read for anyone who works non-stop. Try it out for a month and see if you can reduce your work hours while increasing what you get accomplished.
The following link can be accessed by non WSJ subscribers for 7 days:http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203803904574429151858232582-email.html
11
Sep
2009
Is “Pay for Performance” an oxymoron?
A colleague sent the following link to me last week: http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_pink_on_motivation.html
If you listen to the video you’ll hear Daniel Pink talking about why monetary rewards don’t necessarily increase performance; in some cases they actually hurt performance.
He says businesses need to start listening to social science.
I agree.
Now, for the hard questions. How do you get Wallstreet to start listening to social science? Businesses won’t listen until Wallstreet listens. And, how do you get compensation consultants to start listening to social science? Executive compensation programs are big business for consultanting firms. How do you convince employees that a raise matters less than all the non-monetary rewards? We might have social science experiments to prove that this is true but how do you get people to believe it when it comes to their paycheck? Yes, you can hire good, talented people and they will work hard and perform well when given non-monetary rewards; but what about the guy who has kids to raise, a mortgage to pay, and a job that is just a means to an end?
Daniel Pink, I am a big fan of your work.
These are some of the significant details that need to be worked out before business starts to listen to social science.
Ó Offner and Associates, LLC 2009. All rights reserved.
22
May
2009
Panel Discussion
An interesting panel discussion will take place next Thursday, May 28 at St. Louis University in the Busch Student Center.
Matthew Grawitch, Ph.D., director of the Organizational Health Initiative, will serve as moderator for the discussion. The panel is made up of local experts and “Best Places to Work” honorees from across the metropolitan area, including:
- Pete Heidelberg, vice president of global talent management, Monsanto
- Chris Heinz, operations and training manager, Westport One
- Peter Seigel, CFO, SenseCorp
- Kenneth Fleischmann, vice president of human resources, Saint Louis University
Here is a link to event information can be found at: http://www.slu.edu/x30347.xml.
8
May
2009
Test of Time
The eleventh Star Trek movie was just released. The first TV episode aired September 8, 1966. That’s a franchise that has lasted nearly 43 years! I’m no Trekky but I admit I’ve seen most of the movies and several of the spin off TV series (okay, I guess I am a bit of a Trekky). If you’re a Barbie Doll fan, it’s probably a similar experience - Barbie just turned 50 and is still popular with doll enthusiasts of all ages (in fact, a mint boxed Barbie from 1959 sold for $3552.50 on eBay in October 2004). Star Trek had Gene Rodenberry’s genius behind it (http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/index.html) and Barbie had Ruth Handler’s vision of an adult-bodied doll for her daughter, Barbara (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbie). These franchises have inspired criticism, loyalty, and I’ll admit fanatics (I mean who really needs to know Klingon!) but they have withstood the test of time. This got me wondering, as we hear about companies going bankrupt, being sold, or completely going under; exactly what has withstood the test of time?
Houshi Onsen: founded in 718 as a Japanese spa and inn. Its 46thgeneration of family members are still welcoming guests today: http://www.ho-shi.co.jp/jiten/Houshi_E/
Emerson: founded in 1890 in St. Louis, Missouri by two brothers, Charles and Alexander Meston, as an electric fan manufacturer. Today the company is 94thon the Fortune 500 list and is a diversified global manufacturing and technology company with 140,000 employees and $25.3 billion in revenues: www.emerson.com/
Coca-Cola: invented 1886 in Atlanta, Georgia by Dr. John Pemberton, a druggist. Originally it was meant to be a pain reliever for fellow Confederate veterans. The Coca-Cola Company was founded in 1886 by Asa Griggs Candler, an American Business tycoon and former Mayor of Atlanta: http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/ourcompany/index.html
Coffee: introduced around 800 AD in Ethiopia. Introduced to the United States when tea imports were restricted by the British and came into high demand around the Civil War. And still happily imbibed around the world.
Tea: discovered in 2737 BC by the second emperor of China, Shen Nung, “when tea leaves blew into his cup of hot water or so the story goes.” In 350 AD tea is cited for the first time in a Chinese dictionary http://www.2basnob.com/tea-history-timeline.html Also still happily imbibed around the world.
And finally, a local icon, I. E. Millstone: founder Millstone Construction. Mr. Millstone was born January 6, 1907 in North St. Louis County. He paid for his education as an engineer at Washington University by working as a lifeguard in the summers. Eventually, in 1929 (the year of the Great Depression) he opened his own construction business and, following the WWII boom, went on to build highways, airports, and building projects such as Busch Stadium and the Mercantile Tower. According to news reports as recent as last year, Mr. Millstone could still be found working in his office on a regular basis. A self-proclaimed “hard-worker” his entire life, Mr. Millstone credits the success of his company with the “willingness of the company to adapt to changing times and conditions, and to seek new areas of construction work.” http://www.themillstonecompany.com/news/index.html?uid=20
It seems to me that Mr. Millstone and the Star Trek captains have a lot in common. Even during hard times, they seek out new ways of solving problems, forge ahead and seek to go “where no one has gone before”. As we forge ahead in this economy perhaps that’s a precedent to follow.
Ó Offner and Associates, LLC 2009. All rights reserved.