All articles written by John Howard, Ph.D., except where noted.

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Wise Managers Enjoy the Season with No Letup
From Jim Sirbasku’s Desk

Ahhh, the holidays. A time for family, parties, good food, football, gifts…and oh, yes – work. It's not last by accident in this list; to the detriment of organizations everywhere, work often comes last this time of year.

Not that I want to be Ebenezer and dampen anyone's holiday parade. I enjoy the holidays as much as the next person. But I've seen leaders let up on employee performance programs during this time of year only to face the same management problems in the new year. With neglect, they may even worsen. So a word to the wise men and women out there who are trying to do well by their employees: The right time to manage your employees is NOW, as well as the other 11 months of the year. You will do your best work if you keep employee performance on the front burner, where it belongs, all year long.

The wheels are turning now. Some of you are wondering why you cannot relax for these last few weeks of the year and even through part of January. After all, you and your workers have toiled so hard. The answer is that you will toil even harder later if you put off important tasks today.

With a doff of my stocking cap to all HR professionals out there, here are my

1. Complacency is a disease that plagues business. And guess what? It's contagious. The people in one department see their colleagues in another department slacking off right before or right after the company party, and they decide to do the same. Someone meets his goal for November and decides he can tread water in December. His counterpart takes the cue, whether she met her goals last month or not. Believe me, this illness spreads -- and quickly! -- once it gets started. The only known cure is to wash your hands of it from the start to keep it out of your organization.

2. Procrastination is complacency's cousin. The Big P sets in once people are already infected with complacency. Its symptoms include putting off the most difficult tasks from day to day, doing the easy things first, and busying yourself throughout the day with ONLY the easy things. Soon we forget the difficult tasks altogether. The cure? Control The Big C. If you keep that infection out of the workplace, The Big P is easier to manage too.

3. Habits are hard to break. That's why we want only good ones in the workplace. But if you let bad ones grab a toehold, even for a little while, they might just gain a foothold. Soon they have hoisted themselves all the way into your business, and the veteran hard worker who started coming late one Monday now makes a habit of it then and on Fridays too. Or the manager who "forgot" to use a key recruiting assessment tool once or twice now overlooks it all the time. One study suggests that given time, bad habits become learned behaviors, and we lapse back into them when we're under stress. Since stress is a normal part of the work environment, maintaining good work habits is a discipline we need to observe daily.

4. Set a good example for new workers. Bringing in new staff is a regular event at many places, even during the holidays. Put yourself in the new hire's shoes: How will she view the office partying the last half of November and all of December? How do you want her to see YOU?

5. Set an example for everyone. Closely related to showing the new person how work is done in your office is showing everyone else – your colleagues, your boss, your direct reports. Adopt a professional demeanor and it's likely to be viral – in a good way.

6. Manage performance while other business is less "busy." Perhaps some of the companies you work with have slowed down production a bit. Turn this external hiatus into internal productivity. While you have the time, review the things you and your staff need to improve, then put in place a plan to do so.

7. Control the things you can. This is closely related to items 5 and 6. You might not be able to do anything about another department's departure from the dayto- day routine, but you don't have to join them or beat them. Control your own space by managing well. Maybe it will rub off on the other guys.

8. Your competitors are not snoozing, especially if you are in first place and they are in second or third. If you are not in first place, this could be a good time to redouble your efforts and get there. If you are in first place, remember that old adage, 'The bigger they are...'

9. Find ways to celebrate all year long. Really. Successful companies should reward their employees year-round, not just once a year. Yes, the end-of-year holidays are a special time for families and friends. But if you take the time to praise and recognize your workforce regularly, your business will reap the benefits year-round and expectations for unending special holiday treatment will lessen.

10. It's a kindness to your organization and to all of your employees to show off a wellmanaged workforce all of the time. Consider it a beautifully wrapped gift to everyone, including you. Happy holidays!

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BOOK REVIEW: A Vice President of Employee Dreams

Anyone seeking business inspiration from fiction might well unearth the answer in THE DREAM MANAGER by best-selling author Matthew Kelly. Although the use of a made-up tale is rare to impart this kind of wisdom, Kelly taps into a universal problem and offers what could be a universally adopted solution.

Books of fiction with real-life plots are of course not unusual; all fiction contains nuggets of reality. But novels with a purposeful message about business life are unique. As long as people accept THE DREAM MANAGER for what it is – a simple story to help open the eyes of key leaders – the story will not suffer for being a business "parable," as the publisher describes it. In fact, its charms lie in its quick-read, novel approach.

For starters, let's talk about what the book is not. Despite a title which can be taken more than one way, it does not refer to a person who is the answer to all employees' dreams. Instead, it describes instead a person who manages employees' dreams by making sure they happen. He shows workers in the company how to get there from here.

The struggling fictional company where the dreamers work is Admiral Janitorial Services, but it could just as well be Any Company. Leaders at Admiral want to know why turnover is astronomical. In the process of investigating what employees really want from life, they discover a simple truth – everyone has a personal dream and companies can achieve their dreams of success if they help employees fulfill their own desires. These dreams could be buying a home or just taking time off work to do something else important.

In the book, Kelly explores the connection between the dreams employees chase and the way workers engage on the job. He maintains that collaboration happens when people work together to achieve company objectives and personal dreams. The message of THE DREAM MANAGER is that becoming aware of the concept will change the way organizations manage and relate to people.

Some of Kelly's other books include The Rhythm of Life, Perfectly Yourself, A Call to Joy, and The Seven Levels of Intimacy. He is the founder of Floyd Consulting and has given more than 2,500 keynote presentations at conferences and conventions, including Fortune 500 companies, national trade associations, professional organizations, universities, churches and nonprofits.

ABOUT THE BOOK:
THE DREAM MANAGER
Author: Matthew Kelly
176 pages
ISBN 978-1401303709
Publisher: Hyperion

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CASE STUDY: PXT™ Highlights Top-Performing Firefighters

Even a team already using a sophisticated and effective method for choosing employees, such as a highperforming fire and rescue unit, can benefit from ProfileXT™.

Look at the example of just such a unit operating in a large city. The department operated from a foundation of hiring strength by selecting applicants who had already passed a written exam, a test of physical abilities, and an evaluation that an industrial psychologist performed.

But leaders decided to see if they could refine their selection process even more. They chose the PXT™ Job Match to help identify those with the potential to become top performers.

Participants
The department chose 24 firefighters to participate in the online assessment. Established performance evaluations showed that 14 operated at top levels. The other 10, while good employees, had not yet reached the top performance rating.

Job Match Pattern
A Job Match Pattern came from examining assessment results for the 14 top-ranked firefighters. Next, the department applied this pattern to all 24 firefighters, and noted an overall percent match for each one. They selected 80 percent to represent a good match to the Job Match Pattern; this means that a score of 80 percent or greater should identify a top performer.

Results
Of the 24 performers:

• Eleven of the 14 top-ranked firefighters, or 79 percent of them, scored 80 percent or higher on the Job Match.

• Two of 10 not identified as top performers scored 80 percent or higher on the Job Match, for a selection rate of 20 percent. Looked at another way, eight of these 10 did NOT score at the Job Match percentage.

Summary
With 79 percent of top performers and 20 percent of less-than-top performers meeting the Job Match score of 80 percent or higher, the department learned how PXT™ can fit hand-in-hand with the initial selection of firefighters. These ratios reflect the power of the pattern developed for this organization to select top candidates, and demonstrate that the fire and rescue department would overlook few potential high performers when using the matching process properly.

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STRATEGIES FOR WINNING: Look into the Future*

Are you on track?
If you don't keep score in business and in sales, it may be hard to tell whether you're winning or losing.

A Personal Story from Bud Haney
Occasionally, I've skulked into Jim's office and said, "It's time for a 'William Wallace'." If you've seen the movie Braveheart, then you know about William Wallace. He's the simple farmer who inspired his fellow Scots to revolt against the powerful British who occupied the Scottish hillsides. Against all odds, Wallace led his countrymen to freedom, through his words and actions.

We rely on a William Wallace to give our salespeople a shot of adrenaline when we sense that they are getting complacent, or when our sales figures are not meeting our expectations. We always operate with three sets of goals: a minimum goal, a realistic goal, and a dream goal. Because we're both aggressive, we more or less forget about the minimum and realistic goals and we go for the dream goal. We check the numbers daily to see if we are tracking toward the dream goal, and if we fall a bit behind, we act quickly to get back on course.

Throughout our years together, I have seen Jim inspire our troops in astonishing fashion. I've seen him lift the spirits of people when they were down, shake up people when they became complacent, and motivate salespeople to aspire to unbelievable goals and then go out and achieve them.

A William Wallace amounts to a staff meeting where, frankly, Jim gets a little maniacal in front of our salespeople, arms flailing, ranting about how we have to do something to get our sales up. Let me tell you, when it comes to acting maniacal, Jim could win an Academy Award. The purpose is to get everybody fired up, to get them to refocus on their goals, and, ultimately, to go blasting toward our dream goals.

Even when we're making money, Jim can make it sound like the end of the world is near. His act never fails to get everyone's activity level up two or three notches. If our numbers aren't tracking the way we want them to, that is, if they're not going to lead us to our dream goal, then it's time to take action. Whether you use the William Wallace method or some other action to keep your business on track, what's important is that you do measure. Examine your conscience. Have you ever prepared a sales forecast that ultimately did not pan out? Anyone who tells you they haven't is either delusional or is riding a wave of so-far lucky statistics toward a fall. Even in good years, where sufficient revenues are achieved, the majority of sales forecasts are poor predictors of what is ultimately sold, when and to whom – but if we hit our numbers, it no longer matters, right?

Maybe in former years it didn't but not in the new economy. No longer can any of us afford the luxury of a forecast that is not absolutely airtight, a truly reliable predictor of the outcome of all of the time, money and effort we plan on investing in our businesses. So don't take chances. Review your sales forecast for reality while there is still time to do something about any chinks you find in your armor.

Let's assume that your forecast consists of sales into existing and new accounts, sales you hope you will make from beating the bushes for suspects and sales already in process to some extent or other. In this strategy, we will look at new business sales; later, we'll come back to reality, checking sales that have already made it from your suspect to your prospect list. Let's begin a four-question reality check of your new business forecast.

Question 1: What Are Your Projected Sales?
Look at the total figure you are projecting in sales from these yet-to-be customers. Now, consider what mix of products/services you project you'll sell into each of these accounts, and for what margin. Be conservative – don't project every new sale at the levels of the largest new sale you've ever made. Once you have worked this out, divide the value of your average new sale into your total target to get the number of new customers you're going to need to come in to finish on forecast. Great – now you have a clear picture of your targets for new customers, product mix and revenue/margin figures. Hold those thoughts.

Before asking Question 2, look at your sales cycle. For the purpose of this discussion, assume you get your business from quotations or proposals. These quotations/proposals come about as a result of one or a series of one-on-one meetings and/or presentations. Your one-on-ones are a result of initial appointments from lead-generation activity, and your primary source of lead generation is either cold or warm calls. If your deal cycle is different, then simply apply the thinking we're going to explore to the milestones that characterize your typical sale.

From Question 1 you know the number of new deals you need to close to hit the new business figure for this year. What are you doing about closing them? If you're not investing in enough focused activity, then, regardless of how desirable or possible the result you've projected, you just won't hit your numbers. But how can you tell if you're involved in enough of the right activity to assure your success? That's the focus of Question 2.

Question 2: What's Your Proposal Hit Rate?
Before you can determine the likely effectiveness of your activity plan, you need to do some research. Look into past experience of your typical sales cycle to fine-tune your forecast. The first thing you'll need to estimate is how many proposals (based on your experience) you'll have to produce to hit the number of deals you've forecast. If you don't have useful previous performance figures, then estimate conservatively. Err on the side of more rather than fewer proposals. Let's say you get a 1-in-3 hit rate with your proposals. Then, to close 10 deals, you'll need requests for 30 proposals.

Question 3: How Many Meetings to Get to Proposal?
These proposals resulted from one or a series of meetings/presentations and selling activity. What does your previous performance tell you about the number of prospects you need to engage in one or a series of one-on-ones to get one prospect to the proposal stage? How many brand-new suspects do you have to meet before you find one that has an identifiable need for what you offer, the budget, wherewithal and willingness to get a proposal from you? Again, conservative realism is key. If 1 of 2 contacts you meet results in a request for proposal, then your target of 30 proposals demands that you meet at least 60 new people.

Question 4: How Many Calls to Get a Meeting?
We assumed that you won these meetings from targeted cold or warm calls to suspects identified from your research. How many calls will you need to make? Let's say you have a 1-in-4 hit rate converting calls to appointments. To get 60 appointments, you'll need to speak with 240 new prospects. Finally, let's say it takes an average of four calls to get each of your target suspects on the telephone after you've mailed them. You have 960 calls to make this year!

In our example, your modest target of 10 new deals demands that you

• make 960 calls to speak with 240 new people…

• to get meetings with 60…

• to get to the proposal stage with 30 to close 10.

When you work out your own forecast, it will uncover the reality of the work before you. If this were your forecast, assuming an even spread of activity over a 250-day business year, you'd need to make about 20 calls to new people per week; meet a new suspect every four days; dispatch a proposal about every eight business days; and close a deal every five weeks. These hard measures are the only objective means to determine the reality of your forecast.

Given where you are right now, how are you doing? Are you hitting your call, meeting, proposal and close targets so far this year? Be honest – if you are not meeting those targets, then it's back to the drawing board.

An in-depth look at your forecast will sometimes tell you that you simply don't have the time or resources to undertake the necessary activity. If the activity level required to hit your numbers is simply impossible, given other commitments like existing account selling, implementation, servicing or any other responsibilities you might have, then you cannot hit your forecast numbers without making changes. Do what needs to be done to hit the key milestones, and do it now!

If it's obvious you won't be able to hit your originally forecast numbers, do something about any misprojection now. You will never have more of your year left than you do today!

The message is simple. Take a hard look at your forecast for new business, and reduce it using a set of SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timebound) activity/result milestones that allow you to determine whether you are on or off target. Make your forecast a living tool that ensures your success by comparing your actual progress against each of these milestones on a daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly basis, and adjust your course if you start to slide off target. Success or failure in sales does not happen by accident. The future is entirely in your hands.

*From the book 40 STRATEGIES FOR WINNING IN BUSINESS by Bud Haney and Jim Sirbasku. © S&H Publishing Co., 5205 Lake Shore Drive, Waco, Texas 76710-1732. All rights reserved. Contact S&H Publishing Co., (254) 751-1644, for reprint permission.

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PRODUCT FOCUS: 12 Gifts with Staying Power

In keeping with the popular "12 Days of Christmas" carol, here are 12 gifts to leaders that will last throughout the year and beyond. Think of them as presents with staying power.

On the first day: Look to the variety of uses for the ProfileXT™ to get you off to a good start. Use it for selection, coaching, training, promotion, managing, and succession planning. This powerful tool offers upto- date technology to help put the right people in the right jobs.

Day two: In addition to turtledoves, advance with PXTSales™. PXTS helps select, train and coach salespeople with a purpose -- developing them for superior sales performance. With this tool, you are laying the foundation for your sales team.

Day three: Even graceful French hens have nothing on our Customer Service Profile™. This assessment measures such characteristics as tact, trust, empathy, conformity, focus and flexibility. It also calculates a person's vocabulary and mathematics skill level, and examines how each person’s perspective on serving customers aligns with the organization’s policies and attitudes.

On the fourth day, admire your calling birds, then call for Step One Survey II™. Its easily digested report promotes positive behaviors on the job -- including good attitudes about work in general, as well as promptness, confidentiality, dependability and loyalty. Think of it as setting the tone.

Day five: Golden rings are pretty, but we also like WorkForce Analysis Profile™ to help assess engagement levels and employees' total workplace experiences. This excellent assessment also delivers important information about job satisfaction and the work environment of staff members. It's solid gold.

Day six: Let the geese lay the eggs. CheckPoint360°™ keeps everyone out of goose-egg territory by giving managers the opportunity to receive an evaluation of their job performance from all around -- bosses, peers, and direct reports. CheckPoint360°™ can fortify an employee’s perceptions about his strengths, if they are accurate, while offering insight into other areas where he may need to improve.

Just like those swans on day seven, everyone operates swimmingly with the CheckPoint SkillBuilder Series™. This system of professional development helps managers improve in the key areas of listening, processing information, effective communication, relationship building, thinking creatively, helping teams work together and many other areas.

Day eight: How to coordinate eight maids a-milking? Try Profiles Performance Indicator™. This assessment measures the behavior factors that help a leader understand, motivate and manage his employees, helping to reduce conflicts that could become obstacles to solving problems.

Nine ladies dancing might be a feast for the eyes, but don't forget the soul of the team. Profiles Team Analysis™ makes team building both challenging and rewarding. Effective teams achieve results far beyond what individuals could accomplish on their own. But team building is more than putting a group of people together and hoping for synchronized stepping. This system reports the attributes of each team member, shows the team’s strengths and alerts the leader to potential problems.

Ten energetic leaping lords will have nothing on you with Profiles Sales Indicator™. Use it to help you select, direct and train all that movement. This assessment measures five key qualities of successful salespeople and predicts performance in seven critical sales behaviors. Using the Profiles Sales Indicator to build and develop a sales organization can result in record-breaking productivity, retention of top performers, and exceptional profitability.

Pipe up with 11 pipers and the Organizational Management Analysis™, a summary of data from all of the individual CheckPoint360°™ feedback reports from a selected group. The OMA verifies individual alignment with the corporate vision, mission, purpose and strategic goals. This analysis will help an organization chart its course to achieve goals with purpose, clarity and certainty.

On the 12th day, listen for the drumbeat of your dedicated Profiles’ team, always on the job to help you solve your organizational challenges.

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