This post is the second in a series written by Mary Jo Asmus for HRM Today on executive coaching for human resource managers. The first post on what an executive coach does can be found here.

Human Resources professionals are often responsible for seeking out and providing executive coaches for senior executives and high potential leaders in their organizations. Some may be responsible for developing and maintaining a “coaching pool” – a database of coaches who are screened by the organization to provide their one-on-one services to executives.

Your decision on whether an executive is ready, willing, and able to be coached can be significant for that individual’s development, your reputation and the success of coaching in your organization. It’s important for organizations to have some guidelines to follow about when it makes sense to engage an executive coach.

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Laura Miller, Chief Human Resource Officer and Robin Gee, Head of Employee Engagement  at Coca-Cola were speakers at the 5th Annual Internal Branding & Employee Engagement Conference, which was held in Miami, FL in February 2011. This is a recap of the presentation and challenges/solutions presented within.

As one of the most recognized brands in the world there is no shortage of employee brand love at Coke, but how do you turn brand love into company love?  With the impending merger of the Coca Cola Company and independent bottler, Coca-Cola Enterprises the organization knew they needed to approach the vertical integration with careful planning and strong communication.  This could present a huge opportunity to build engagement and a sense of “oneness” between the companies or dissolve into two cultures fighting against the merger.  Two companies on parallel paths drove engagement.  The key to Coca-Cola Refreshments success at engagement was leader led, business owned, HR facilitated and employee involved.

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Here’s the asinine question of the week I received from someone in the HR department in my company: can we free up budget dollars to invest in a Facebook-like application internally?

Talk about a career-limiting question.

Let me get something off my chest: if you are a heavy Facebook user, you might as well put a big “L” on your forehead. Why? Because in my opinion there are only 3 kinds of Facebook zealots: the Lonely, the Lovers of self (otherwise known as narcissists) and those who are Looking to get Lucky (I could have used another “L” word there, but this is a PG site). In many cases, it’s a combination of all three.

And, just so you know, I’m on Facebook. I signed up several years ago because I felt I had to. I was under the impression that, if I was going to be “with it” from a social network perspective, I better be on MySpace, LinkedIn, Plaxo, Twitter and yes, Facebook. I also signed up for a bunch of others that have probably gone out of business by now.

I haven’t posted anything on FaceBook other than my basic information when I set it up. The problem is, once I created a page on Facebook, all of these so-called “friends” came out of the woodwork. I couldn’t believe the requests I got. Most aren’t my real friends; they’re people I may have met at some point in my life, but not people I want to hang out with. If I did, I would. But I “friended” them anyway. I’m not sure why; I guess I felt obligated or thought that it would be rude not to. The upshot is, I haven’t talked to or even thought about the vast majority of these “friends” in years; probably because they fit one or more of my 3 “L” categories.

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Recognize This! – Senior leaders need to improve respect for employees, trustworthiness, and caring to better manage the workforce.

The Corporate Executive Board recently shared with us the Top 5 Critical HR Priorities for 2011 from their Corporate Leadership Council HR global agenda poll. Each day this week, I’ll address one priority.

Priority 1 for HR in 2011: Improving Senior Leader Capabilities at Managing the Workforce

Senior leaders constantly juggle innumerable priorities, each often requiring a different capability. Which should HR focus on to help senior leaders improve? I suggest senior leaders can’t hope to manage effectively unless they have the respect and trust of their teams. Their employees must also know the senior leader cares about them as people, not just “human capital.”

RESPECT
Paul Marciano, author of Carrots and Sticks Don’t Work, recently offered seven “critical” ways managers show respect for employees. His way was employee recognition: “Thanking employees and acknowledging their contributions on a daily basis.”

I don’t know if Paul listed these in order of importance, but there is no denying that acknowledgment of ourselves, our work, and the value of our contributions goes a long way to telling us we are respected in the workplace. Paul’s last item was trust: “Demonstrating faith and belief in their employees’ skills, abilities, and decisions,” which leads in the next capability senior leaders need to manage the workforce.

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More than half of all organizations in the U.S. are using or have used executive coaching. There is also a fair amount of attention in the media on executive coaching. Yet I still run across individuals and organizations that are curious about what an executive coach does.

There are four common misperceptions that I often hear. So let’s talk about what it isn’t first. Executive coaching isn’t:

Just a conversation: As you will see, executive coaching is much more than a conversation. It entails the use of a process, tools, and skills on the part of the coach.

Consulting: Generally, consulting is geared toward process improvements in the organization. Coaching is geared toward improvements in an individual or team.

Workplace therapy: An individual who is mentally ill should see a therapist, not a coach. Coaching is for people who can take personal responsibility and are willing to take some risks and move quickly toward their goals.

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While at HRPA 2011, Canada’s conference and trade show focusing on HR issues and trends, I stopped in to check out Howard Wallack’s session, 10 Global Labor Trends for 2011 and What You Need to Know to Manage Them. Wallack is the Director of Global Member Programs for Society for Human Resource Management, and in his discussion at HRPA 2011, he drew from several studies and surveys (EIU’s Global Firms in 2020, IBM’s Working Beyond Borders, BCG/WFPMA’s Creating People Advantage 2010, and more) and gathered input from SHRM’s Global Expertise panel to determine the 10 most prevalent global labor trends for the rest of 2011.

The business world is becoming increasingly global, yet as Wallack mentioned in his presentation, there aren’t HR standards across the globe right now. Inconsistent economies and policies add complications to an already complex mix; for example, while low job growth is an issue in the U.S. and Canada, it’s not an issue in Asia, where places like Thailand are currently experiencing 9 – 10 percent growth. The U.S. is less friendly than Canada when it comes to immigration, which can present a challenge. In addition, employee engagement is driven by very different factors around the globe: In Asia, employees want titles and learning opportunities, compensation and benefits comes down the chain; in the U.S., health care coverage is most important, then compensation, then responsibility. With that said, let’s take a look at what Wallack says are the most noticeable trends for the rest of this year:

10 Global Labor Trends for 2011

1. The importance of globalization and integrating markets: Companies will become larger and more global in the next 10 years, handling operations in more countries than they do today.
   —We’re living in an increasingly border-less world.

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Today I am live blogging from the Human Resource Executive Forum.  If you are an executive in human resources, this is truly an event that needs to make your radar each year as you plan your travel budget.  I have attended the last two years and continue to be impressed with the quality of the discussions and how the event is morphing and emerging as a unique way to interact with CHRO’s from some of the largest global organizations.

This morning, we’re kicking off with a discussion about building leadership pipeline in your organization.  The panel is moderated by Kevin Cashman, Sr. Partner at Korn Ferry International.  Panelists include:

• Lucien Alziari, SVP of HR and Corporate Responsibility for Avon Products, Inc.
• Kathleen Barclay, SVP of HR for Kroger Co.
• David Binkley, SVP of Global HR for Whirlpool Corp.
• Audrey Boone Tillman, EVP of Corporate Services for Aflac

One of the ideas that came up early on in the discussion was how to be an effective HR executive within your organization. Lucien Alziari brought up a great point.  ”It’s hard to be neutral on talent.”  The challenge as an HR professional is to find an organization to work with where talent is truly the focus.

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The following is a guest post by leadership consultant and award-winning author Sylvia Lafair. In this post, Sylvia discusses leadership development and the qualities and characteristics of effective leaders.

Investing in leadership development is critical for today’s climate of constant change, continued complexity, crises, and challenges.

The big question is how to prioritize and underline the characteristics most important for an effective 21st Century leader to take charge and lead his or her organization.

Leadership Skills – What really needs to be developed?

In simpler times we could say that to bring out the best in the brightest and to enhance natural talent, there would be a yearlong immersion into personal as well as professional development. Now, the speed of change makes that a luxury no longer appropriate.

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Good judgment comes from experience which comes from bad judgment. – Anon

Looking at the common mistakes of change leaders is a great entry into this topic because people often only achieve success through its opposite: failure. Read the rest of this entry »

American Medical Response of Connecticut, Inc. case ends in settlement

The NLRB has released the following press release announcing the settlement.   Thanks to my friend Seth Borden over at Labor Relations Today for letting me know about this right away!

Settlement reached in case involving discharge for Facebook comments
A settlement has been reached in a case involving the discharge of a Connecticut ambulance service
employee for posting negative comments about a supervisor on her Facebook page.
The NLRB’s Hartford regional office issued a complaint against American Medical Response of
Connecticut, Inc., on October 27, 2010, alleging that the discharge violated federal labor law
because the employee was engaged in protected activity when she posted the comments about her
supervisor, and responded to further comments from her co-workers. Under the National Labor
Relations Act, employees may discuss the terms and conditions of their employment with coworkers
and others.

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As a manager, this issue is near and dear to my heart.  Fortunately, television writer Patricia Forrester sent me some great tips from her new book, Nice Girls on Top that I thought I would share with you:

• Pick Your Team Carefully – Always try to find the best person for the job. This doesn’t just mean basic skills, but personality traits that indicate the individual won’t take advantage of kind and generous conditions. Always check with previous employers about each job candidate and ask about his or her integrity.

• Trust Your Team – Whether you chose your team or not, you should relax and just trust everything will be fine. If you are a boss who constantly worries about his or her employees taking advantage, then you are sending out the vibe that you don’t trust them. Your employees can sense such a vibe and can feel demoralized by it. This will lead to resentment and will get in the way of productivity. You should always trust your employees and give each person the benefit of the doubt until something happens to disappoint. Trusting your people will not only create a healthy work environment, but will make it easier for people to do their best work.

• Treat Everyone Equally – Part of being the “nice” boss is treating everyone equally and not playing favorites. The way to do this is to have structured rules or guidelines. For example, if someone meets certain requirements, he or she can be granted time off. This fair play is effective and productive. No one will feel slighted. On the other hand, if you play favorites, feelings of resentment may set in with employees who are not getting the special treatment. Such feelings of resentment may lead to certain staff becoming careless and wanting to take advantage of their work situation.

• Be a Great Role Model – Always lead by example. If you don’t take advantage, then chances are your staff won’t either. Rather, being a great role model that goes the extra mile for your staff will make them go the extra mile for you.

• Stand Up for Yourself – Nice bosses are not weak people. If you do think one of your employees is taking advantage of your kindness, stand up for yourself. Talk to the person in question in private and express your concerns. Let them know how you are feeling and allow them to change the situation with your guidance.

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During an interview for a new employee in his department, Manager Bob asks Sam, the interviewee, about his marriage status and if he attends any local churches.

Manager Sue ignores a complaint from Joe, one of her direct reports, that another supervisor in a different department keeps sending him inappropriate and lewd emails.

Manager Chris puts Leslie on disciplinary action for being late four times in the past month. Tom has been late five times in the same month without as much as warning. Tom is Caucasian. Leslie is Asian American. Read the rest of this entry »

I recently facilitated a session on Emotional Intelligence with a small group of CEOs of mid-size companies who are in growth mode. I was hired for the round-table session to help them appreciate the impact of change on their employees. Change Management is certainly not a new topic and there are dozens of very good books out there on the subject.  I chose to discuss this from an EQ perspective and a personal perspective.

I started by asking this question: What was the worst thing anyone has ever done to you? I asked them to write this down and capture some words or phrases that described how they felt.  Some folks had to go back to their childhood but just about everyone recalled fairly vividly this event in their lives. I asked the CEOs to share this with the group.  Several key themes emerged from this simple 15 minute exercise.

First, no one was immune from such an experience. Second, the experiences varied broadly and something that might be considered trivial to someone might very well be very traumatic to another.  And finally, what made the experience so hurtful was that at the time in occurred, there seemed to be few tools or skills or people or places around to help them process it.  In other words, there was no change management.

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For the sixth year in a row, Hay Group released the results of its Best Companies for Leadership study, naming General Electric the top company for leadership worldwide.  Proctor & Gamble, Intel, Siemens, Banco Santander, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Accenture, Walmart and Southwest rounded out the top 10.

What exactly does ‘great for leadership’ mean? In a nutshell, the companies on this list actively promote and support leadership development throughout all levels of the organization, providing extensive training, education and mentoring programs – as well as viable work/life options.

Notice how the top companies for leadership also happen to be leaders in their industries as well? That’s no coincidence – their leadership and development initiatives benefit the bottom line just as much as they benefit the individual employees.  Hay Group’s research finds that these companies owe much of their long-time success and sustainability to “attracting and developing leaders who can collaborate, inspire and lead,” according to the group’s website.

Leading the Way: Four Characteristics that Define a Great Company for Leadership
For more specific examples of what defines a company that’s great for leadership, check out the list below of the characteristics that define these companies – according to Hay Group’s official study – and how various companies on the list embody these characteristics:

1. Diversity is Valued as a Business Asset.

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