Today’s work experience is fueled with emotion. The means in which you provide for your family, the community you live in, the evolution of your skills/competency and how you spend such a large percentage of your time are life essential considerations.

I believe there is an increasing desire for more meaning in the experience. If the organization can connect with candidates and employees on an emotional level, elevate the vision of the experience in both the hearts and minds of right-fit talent and deliver against those expectations consistently…you’ll have accomplished something powerful. They are the genesis for cultivating pride and commitment toward a shared purpose. Far too often that vision and values set is missing from the job description and performance review. They shouldn’t be.

Passion at work doesn’t manifest itself on auto pilot. And people aren’t ‘potentialized’ without real strategic effort and investment from both the organization and its leadership. Performance starts with people strategy.

Decisions around work style design and experience are increasingly important. So is delivery. How we connect our people to those decisions and communicate them both inside and outside the organization guide, shape, influence and develop culture.  Culture can absolutely be a competitive advantage or the one big thing that inhibits performance.

The premise behind my own organizational guiding principles is simple:

Put people first…profits follow.

Posted in Brand, Communications, Employee Engagement, Leadership, Recruiting, Sales

Tags: Career, Jobs, Work

“Every two days we create as much information as we did up to 2003.”  I am talking about since the dawn of civilization!  Welcome to content saturation and consumption overload.

“Content might be king, but that is no longer enough.”  As the lines between consumption and creation continue to evolve, quality counts even more.  Creating breakthrough, magnetic content poses an increasing challenge amid the overwhelming deluge of buzz.

If you want to build and sustain a Tribe (or a Customer or Talent Community) consistency counts.  And the content needs to be:

AUTHENTIC…DIFFERENTIATED…and COMPELLING (the real hard part).

I blog, flip and facebook.  I create content.  For example:

I care about my audience.  I want to have impact.  And taking my content marketing to the next level makes a difference.  Compare:

Authentic?  Differentiated?  Compelling?  I hope so and plan to consistently push both myself and the customers we serve in that direction. While I love to Flip, I also know know that might get my content marketing to authenticity but often falls a little short on differentiated and compelling. Quality counts. It elevates the experience. The experience is everything…just ask a customer.

Posted in Brand, Communications, Social Media

Tags: Content Marketing, Marketing, Video

I enjoyed spending the last few days renewing connections, expanding my community and participating in the conversation about what is next and new for SHRM Chapter Leaders across the country. The energy, optimism and intent to deliver increasingly more value to it’s membership was evident both in session and during all of the casual conversations throughout the conference. I consider it a privilege to be able to contribute in a small way.

Prior to my session I was invited to the SHRM Social Media Studio for a chat on SHRM10TV Live @ Leadership to discuss brand strategy, social media and my thoughts on what is next for HR. The clip is included and I look forward to continuing the conversation through a number of planned visits, seminars and keynotes for SHRM Chapters in 2011, including my keynote at 2011 National Talent & Staffing Management Conference & Exposition in San Diego.

Thanks SHRM for another great event! As part of our commitment in return we offering SHRM accelerated rates on both our speaking and training portfolio for the remainder of 2010. Any SHRM Chapter inquiring about either our HRCI strategic credit approved special events/workshops or annual conference keynotes should make mention when contacting our office. We look forward to supporting What is Next!

SHRM10TV “Live” @ Leadership — A conversation with Ryan Estis from SHRMSocMedGuy on Vimeo.

Posted in Brand, Employee Engagement, Recruiting, Social Media

Tags: Human Resources, SHRM, Staffing, Talent Management

I am en route to Washington DC for one of my favorite conference events of the year, SHRM Leadership.  Bottom line, for my time, SHRM delivers an outstanding conference experience by getting the following right:  Content; Channels (I’ll catch what I miss here #shrmlead10) and Community development (I will also be attending the Twilight Tweet Up and look forward to the more casual business conversation and new connections that time affords).  That is what keeps me coming back.

I get the idea that the Unconference is the trend line and talk of the twitter stream.  Right.  I’d rather have a guarantee of quality, actionable content (Marcus Buckingham this year at National and Sir Richard Branson slated for next aren’t too bad) and agenda. That’s me.

I will  offer some thoughts around brand strategy and experience design to elevate workforce productivity and accelerate association membership (we will attack both) Friday afternoon.  I am the closing session from 3:45 p.m. – 5:00 p.m which also means I am the last line of defense between the HR Leaders and Happy Hour!  We’ll have some fun (preview enclosed).

Posted in Brand, Communications, Employee Engagement, Leadership, Recruiting, Social Media

Tags: Associations, Conference, Human Resources, SHRM

When you spend time talking to business leaders about culture, sales strategy, experience design and talent invariably you are going spend time talking about relationships.

I love to talk about and analyze relationships.  Those closest to me know this and I believe its essential to my body of work.   Speaking, Training, Consulting, Leadership, Brand Strategy & Communication Design…it’s all about the relationship.

I recently attended an outstanding keynote presentation where the speaker remarked that today your Network = your Net Worth.  Good point.

As technology, innovation, value and price exist in an increasingly competitive landscape and level playing field the relationship is back in vogue as mission critical to success.

Here are 10 Key Considerations to Quality Relationship Development:

1.     Be Your Authentic Self – We all desire belonging, acceptance and validation.  Presenting an alternate version of who we are when entering into a new relationship will likely create bigger challenges down the road.  This is true in a job interview, sales transaction and personal situation.  Just be yourself is very sound advice.

2.     Fit Assess – Develop awareness around what you need and desire.  Where do you align and thrive?  What kind of people, connections, support and culture will enable you to be your very best?  I challenge salespeople all the time to define their ideal customer.  Who fits?  Anyone with money isn’t a high value relationship answer.

3.     Focus on Strengths – Spend the most time focusing on what was left in, not what is missing.  Perfectionism and obsessing over flaws can minimize much of what is working and right.  How do you structure performance reviews?  Invariably, we usually know if what is missing is a deal breaker or wholly acceptable.

4.     Be Present – Be there.  Being present means more than having presence.  It means being switched on and engaged in the moment.  I suffered from M.A.D.D. (Manager Attention Deficit Disorder) for years.  Eventually I learned how imperative it is to shut out distractions and focus in the moment.

5.     Be Honest – It’s always the best policy.  You cannot make promises you can’t or don’t intend to keep. That will deteriorate both the relationship and your reputation. Honesty often requires the willingness to have courageous conversations and address conflict head on.

6.     Be Consistent – The experience needs to align with the expectations.  And stability matters. Particularly emotional stability. I can tell you that an organization whose employees are constantly concerned with the “mood of leadership” is an organization derailed.  You can survive but will never truly thrive in an “eggshell culture”.

7.     Communicate – Quality communication establishes expectations, understanding and alignment.  My favorite rule of communication comes courtesy of Dr. Stephen Covey:  Seek first to understand, then be understood.  Communication cycles are critical as well.  The notion that we’ll discuss performance, development, opportunity and alignment at a designated annual review is antiquated.

8.      Listen – Research sites “failure to listen” as the #1 reason salespeople fail.  Listening is an art and acknowledgement that the other person matters.

9.     Give – Unconditionally.  Not because you expect anything in return.  Nurture, care and invest to build something substantive.   Genuine appreciation is almost always present in the context of a quality relationship.

10. Enjoy – When it works it’s a gift…enjoy!

These 10 considerations foster an environment of trust and respect, which form the basis of any quality relationship.

Another important consideration given our time is that you cannot automate relationships.  I believe you can accelerate, expand and influence relationships through new tools and technology.  But meaningful connections that matter need more than 140 characters.

The best relationships are resilient.  They require patience.  They pass tests.  They evolve and endure.  They are hardly perfect.  And ultimately they matter the most.   Any amount of success I have ever achieved had much more to do with the people around me than my individual contribution.

A wise person recently shared with me that success in life is really about the quality of the relationships you have with the people you care about.

I couldn’t agree more.

Want to focus on what is most important now?

A good place to start is the quality of your relationships.

Posted in Brand, Communications, Employee Engagement, Leadership, News, Recruiting, Sales, Social Media

Tags: Relationships

I always enjoy the conversation with Employer Brand International Chairman & CEO Brett Minchington.  As he continues his Employer Brand World Tour (next stop: Paris) we were fortunate to spend a little time together this summer prior to the launch of his new book, Employer Brand Leadership.

Having worked with Brett over the last two years as part of his Employer Brand International consortium it was a real pleasure to connect live again and tap into the the thinking behind the book and his very global perspective related to culture, careers, work style design and all things Employer Branding.  Like most old friends who hadn’t seen each other in some time we spent time catching up on life’s events, lessons on the journey and debating which game was more interesting:  American or Australian Rules Football.  And naturally, given the work we do, the conversation also included thoughts on the evolution and impact of Social Media in the workplace.

We both agreed the shift in the way we connect, communicate and collaborate is still in its infancy.   And based on Brett’s broad experience he is able to cast a wide lens of perspective on rates of adoption, attitude, experience, impact opportunity and ROI.  I captured a portion of our conversation on video and have included an excerpt on Brett’s global perspective here.  For real detail into his insights, ideas and the most robust portfolio of corporate case studies ever assembled on the practice of Employer Branding buy the book!

Posted in Brand, Communications, Employee Engagement, Leadership, Recruiting, Social Media

Tags: Careers, Global, Human Resources, Work

Increasingly it won’t be the marketplace, technology, competition, research or development that accelerates business growth.  Sure, all those things matter. But the people deliver the performance that executes on the plan. Put your people strategy first…profits follow.

Howard Schultz, the CEO of Starbucks said it well in a New York Times interview recently when talking about culture and leadership, “People ask me what’s the most important function when you’re starting an organization or setting up the kind of culture and values that are going to endure.  The discipline I believe so strongly in is HR, and it’s the last discipline that gets funded. Marketing, manufacturing — all these things are important. But more often than not, the head of HR does not have a seat at the table. Big mistake.”

If you are in the practice of people (HR; Leadership) NOW is the time where you can contribute increasingly more value to the business.  NOW is the time where you can drive and sustain a competitive advantage through proactive people practices.  NOW is the time to focus on talent!

We’ll be workshopping through the Trends, Technology and Transformation shaping the practice of people strategy in Indianapolis on October 21 and in Minneapolis on November 3.  Join us for the conversation, networking or just come out for the HRCI strategic credits…we’ll have some fun too!

I recently closed my conversation with Don MacPherson, President of Modern Survey talking about talent.  I asked the employee engagement guru if he agreed with my sentiment that NOW is the time to invest and elevate talent practices.  He challenged that thinking, indicating the right time for both increased attention and subsequent action was about six months ago.  Perhaps if your organization is just starting to make talent practices a priority you are a bit behind.  Here are those thoughts from Don and I look forward to continuing this conversation in both Indy and Minny in the coming weeks!

Posted in Brand, Employee Engagement, Leadership, Recruiting

Tags: Human Resources, Talent

This week I was fortunate to spend some time with author/speaker Darren Barefoot at the Workopolis Talent Symposium events.

Darren is the author of Friends With Benefits and provides a compelling keynote on leveraging social media for business that is full of valuable insights.

A few of my favorites included approaching social media strategy like a cocktail party.  Meaning, if your contribution to the conversation is all about you it just isn’t all that interesting for everyone else.  He is right.  Give value first and focus on listening before contributing is simply great advice!

We also talked a bit about the Facebook friend request for business.  When is it appropriate?  My conclusion is that is you need to proceed with caution.  This is personal space.  If you are a Vendor, Sales Pro, Recruiter or Manager it’s wise to consider the strength of your relationship before you send that friend request.  While I am personally partial to open networking (and many people that friend request me know this) there are a lot of people who don’t want to share their lifestream with somebody they just met in conference room B. When it’s about business it’s best to avoid socially awkward networking. Facebook and LinkedIn are different and it’s a good idea to treat them as such.  Lance Haun offers some good thoughts around this in his post Why Can’t We Be Friends?

Companies continue to consider the merit of allowing access to social media at work and we all need to consider how to expand our professional network effectively.

A closing point Darren makes related to social networking for business is about being remarkable – “doing work that is worthy of being remarked upon.”  Borrowed from the playbook of marketing guru Seth Godin, Darren challenged all of us to make Purple Cows.  That is what it takes to build a Tribe.

Below is a video excerpt of my conversation with Darren.  We are not friends on Facebook…yet.

Posted in Brand, Communications, Leadership, Recruiting, Sales, Social Media, Uncategorized

If at the end of today you provided every customer a Flip-Cam and two minutes to talk about their experience doing business with your organization, what would they say?

If you are in sales what would prospects say about your pitch?  About you?

Internal business partner?  Same question.  Recruiting?  Toss the Flip-Cam over to the candidates…or the Hiring Manager.

The Flip-Cam Test is a powerful assessment for evaluating your Experience Design.

Are you delivering an experience worthy of Client Evangelism?  Are customers passionate enough about their experience to share it with the world?

Every organization needs client testimony.  That proof of concept is a sellers most coveted asset.  That authentic brand evangelism is what creates category separation and drives growth.

Smart sales organizations ask for the testimonial IF (and only if) they deliver an extraordinary experience.  If they are on top of their brand strategy they capture that magic on video.

I ask.  And earning the testimonial matters.  Increasingly, my Experience Design is what separates me from the competition.

Most recently I was fortunate to receive the following testimonial from New Media Services co-founder and Career Summit 2010 organizer Laurie Ruettimann in follow up to the Job Search 2.0 Webinar I delivered.

I asked.  Because it matters.  My brand is no longer what I say it is…what matters so much more is the experience of those I serve.

Who is evangelizing your brand experience?  (Tip:  Take the Flip-Cam Test).

Posted in Brand, Communications, Sales, Social Media

Tags: Customer Satisfaction, Experience Design, Testimonial

We’ve added four dates to our 2010 Speaking Tour in partnership with Workopolis.  We’ll be heading North to present during the Workopolis Strategic Recruitment Summit events.  It’s been a few years since I’ve worked in Canada and look forward to stops in two of my favorite cities, Toronto and Vancouver. Then it’s off to Calgary for a final session.

We’ll talk about all things talent including the evolution of Employment Branding as part of a strategic talent life cycle performance plan.  I look forward joining the outstanding panel Workopolis has assembled and  contributing to this important conversation.  It’s also a chance to catch up with some of my Canadian colleagues…hope you come out and join us!

Posted in Brand, Communications, Employee Engagement, Recruiting, Social Media, Uncategorized

Tags: HR, Workopolis