HRWatchSM HR's biggest asset If you are having difficulty seeing this mail or images in it, you can view it in your Web browser. Volume 8, Issue 10      In This Issue:   The 7 toughest questions (and how to handle them)   Are hidden cultural roadblocks holding you back?   Help new hires succeed   Coaching can-do   If you’re open to growth, you tend to grow   Creating a positive professional image   200 questions job candidates may ask your company   The HR I.Q. test: August '08   We fix machines, why not staff? 5 ways to retool employees   7 steps for effective, stress-free performance reviews   Employers pumping gas perks: 8 high-octane tactics   Your best hire: It may surprise you   The immigration fight gets ugly   Caught in the middle [management] The 7 toughest questions (and how to handle them) Managesmarter Classic: In the professional world, tough questions are as fundamental as paper clips and staples. Starting with the employment interview and ranging through staff meetings, management reviews, informal briefings and formal presentations, almost every business encounter has the potential to draw dangerous crossfire. And in many circles, inquisitorial grilling is as much a part of the business ritual as a handshake to seal a deal. Why do business people ask tough questions? Because they are mean-spirited? Perhaps. Because they want to test your mettle? Maybe. More likely it's because when you make a presentation, you assume the role of a solicitor. In that role, you ask those you solicit (i.e., opposite parties, target audiences) to change. Most people are resistant to change and so they kick the tires. You are the tires. How then to avoid damage from the kicks? How do you survive slings and arrows unleashed? How do you handle tough questions in the line of fire? The savage seven During my 40 years in the communication trade, which has ranged from control rooms in the CBS Broadcast Center in Manhattan to the boardrooms of some of America's most prestigious corporations, I have heard — and have asked — tens of thousands of tough questions. But all of them can be distilled into just seven types. [Here they are and here's how to handle them...] Read the article.  Back to top Are hidden cultural roadblocks holding you back? INCENTIVE online "Culture Shift" columnist Paul Levesque is an author, seminar leader and public speaker with two decades' experience as an international business consultant specializing in the connection between employee motivation and customer satisfaction. He is a senior consultant with Boston-based Novations Inc., and is also founder and CEO of Customer Focus Breakthroughs Inc. Not even the most motivated workforce in the world can get past these fatal—and hidden—cultural barriers. Success in business is virtually impossible unless all employees are aligned toward a common objective that feels equally meaningful to all of them. But cultural alignment does not guarantee success in itself—there are still pitfalls to avoid, obstacles to overcome. And whereas cultural alignment (and its absence) are both highly visible at a glance, many of the most treacherous cultural barriers are harder to see, if not outright invisible. What follows is a summary of the three major types of hidden cultural roadblocks—the three with the greatest potential to bring any organization's advance to a standstill... Read the article.  Back to top Help new hires succeed Caela Farren, Ph.D., is CEO of MasteryWorks. With 30 years of pioneering in the field of career and talent management, MasteryWorks brings wisdom, know-how, and practical and easy-to-communicate solutions for today's pressing talent requirements. The company shifts the thinking of leaders and engages the resources of champions to align organization strategies with individual aspirations. Chances are, that new boss in the office could be gone…before you know it. A recent survey by the Institute of Executive Development and Alexcel Group found that after two years, nearly one-third of senior-level executives who joined new companies do not perform well enough to keep their jobs. This is the same fate for 20 percent of bosses who are promoted from within. And the success rates for new hires across the board are not much better: 22 percent of staff turnover occurs in the first 45 days of employment. (The Wynhurst Group) 46 percent of rookies wash out in their first 18 months. (Leadership IQ) Companies that leave executive onboarding to chance experience failure rates in excess of 50 percent when it comes to retaining new executive talent. (Egon Zehnder International, 2007) [What MANAGERS can do: New hires, like everyone else, want to succeed. Managers need to be coached to put their expectations into...] Read the article.  Back to top Coaching can-do Getting a little help from those who've been there before—assuming they actually know what they're doing—can come in handy. Now there's evidence that, in addition to the weary worker receiving the tips, coaching is a boost to the whole company. Coaching used to carry a stigma because it was more frequently directed at problem employees. Today, it's more likely a sign the employee is on the fast track, and the organization is serious about raising performance levels and developing talent, according to a global study of 1,030 managers and executives commissioned by American Management Association (AMA) and conducted by the Institute for Corporate Productivity. Here are some of the study's key findings... Read the article.  Back to top If you’re open to growth, you tend to grow WHY do some people reach their creative potential in business while other equallytalented peers don’t? After three decades of painstaking research, the Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck believes that the answer to the puzzle lies in how people think about intelligence and talent. Those who believe they were born with all the smarts and gifts they’re ever going to have approach life with what she calls a “fixed mind-set.” Those who believe that their own abilities can expand over time, however, live with a “growth mind-set.”Guess which ones prove to be most innovative over time.“Society is obsessed with the idea of talent and genius and people who are ‘naturals’ with innate ability,” says Ms. Dweck, who is known for research that crosses the boundaries of personal, social and developmental psychology.“People who believe in the power of talent tend not to fulfill their potential because they’re so concerned with looking smart and not making mistakes. But people who believe that talent can be developed are the ones who really push, stretch, confront their own mistakes and learn from them.”In this case, nurture wins out over nature just about every time. While some managers apply these principles every day, too many others instead believe that hiring the best and the brightest from top-flight schools guarantees corporate success. The problem is that... Read the article.  Back to top Creating a positive professional image Laura Morgan Roberts is an assistant professor in the Organizational Behavior unit at Harvard Business School. "Members of negatively stereotyped identity groups may experience an additional form of identity threat known as "devaluation." "Most people use a variety of strategies for managing impressions of their social identities." As HBS professor Laura Morgan Roberts sees it, if you aren't managing your own professional image, others are. "People are constantly observing your behavior and forming theories about your competence, character, and commitment, which are rapidly disseminated throughout your workplace," she says. "It is only wise to add your voice in framing others' theories about who you are and what you can accomplish." There are plenty of books telling you how to "dress for success" and control your body language. But keeping on top of your personal traits is only part of the story of managing your professional image, says Roberts. You also belong to a social identity group—African American male, working mother—that brings its own stereotyping from the people you work with, especially in today's diverse workplaces. You can put on a suit and cut your hair to improve your appearance, but how do you manage something like skin color? Roberts will present her research, called "Changing Faces: Professional Image Construction in Diverse Organizational Settings," in the October issue of the Academy of Management Review. [Here are some key findings in this HBS exclusive interview... Q: What are the steps individuals should take to manage their professional image? A: First, you must realize that if you aren't managing your own professional image, someone else is. People are constantly observing your behavior and forming theories about your competence, character, and commitment, which are rapidly disseminated throughout your workplace. It is only wise to add your voice in framing others' theories about who you are and what you can accomplish. Be the author of your own identity. Take a strategic, proactive approach to managing your image...] Read the article.  Back to top 200 questions job candidates may ask your company Questions for HR Here are some questions that applicants may ask recruiters, managers, HR pros, and others. Some of them you may start hearing more often as the balance of power continues to tilt toward employees. Do you know the answers to these questions? Some of them you may start hearing more often as the balance of power continues to tilt toward employees. Others, you’ll never hear from a candidate’s mouth. Still, asking yourself these questions -- and finding out or exploring the answers -- can give you a deeper understanding of your company [and ultimately the key to more successful hires...] Read the article.  Back to top The HR I.Q. test: August '08 1. What’s the new maximum Fair Labor Standards Act fine against employers in cases of death or serious injury to employees under age 18? a. $20,000 b. $50,000 c. $100,000 2. In an effort to save money and energy, which state recently became... Read the article.  Back to top We fix machines, why not staff? 5 ways to retool employees All companies have a large investment—time and money—in their human capital. A company would never hesitate to fix a machine, repair a plant or improve a work site, so why not treat human assets the same way? Yet, in many cases, a quick termination is the end result and the loss of a valuable human asset. The key to correcting performance problems is a collaborative effort... Read the article.  Back to top 7 steps for effective, stress-free performance reviews Performance review meetings can bring anxiety to both sides of the desk. But it doesn’t have to be that way. With the right planning by supervisors, the meeting can be a productive, morale-boosting exchange that becomes a mutual learning experience for you and the employee. Here are seven steps for running productive and stress-free meetings, according to Marie McIntyre, author of the Your Office Coach e-letter:... Read the article.  Back to top Employers pumping gas perks: 8 high-octane tactics In a recent survey, nearly a third of HR professionals said they know at least one employee who quit in the past year because the high price of gas made the commute too expensive. Rather than watch those employees jump ship for jobs closer to home, some employers are actively addressing the driving dilemma—and revving up their retention programs. Here are eight real-life trends around the country: 1. The year of the four-day workweek... Read the article.  Back to top Your best hire: It may surprise you It's tempting to hire people with personalities like yours, but the better move may be to find people with the strengths you lack. I had lunch with my friend Bridget, who said: "Wait till you meet my new marketing manager. She's incredible—so bubbly and full of ideas." Oh dear, I thought. That doesn't sound promising. But I met the marketing manager, Elaine, and I thought she was great. She was just as bubbly and idea-filled as Bridget had said. There was only one black cloud to mar the scene: Bridget herself is as bubbly and full of ideas as a CEO could be. Her problem isn't generating ideas. It's implementing them. So Bubbly Bridget and Idea-Faucet Elaine worked together for six months, generating grand schemes, and ultimately missing the company's sales goals by a mile. Bridget learned during the Elaine Era that a hiring manager's favorite job candidate is not always the right person for the job. [Long ago, a boss told me: "Hire into your weakness." That's a tough pill for managers to swallow. To make the puzzle even more challenging, there's this: It's not enough to hire into our weaknesses. We also have to hire people who are at least as good as we are in all sorts of arenas, and then we have to empower them to tell us when we're off base. It's a double whammy. I learned this when, as a corporate human resources vice-president, I hired a director of compensation and benefits, a guru at the quantitative side of HR that bores me to tears...] Read the article.  Back to top The immigration fight gets ugly The law is confusing for employers and devastating for workers." A law making it a felony to be an undocumented worker is sowing conflict in Mississippi, as states take action in the absence of federal immigration reform. Atlantic Scaffolding, which employs nearly 400 at a Pascagoula (Miss.)-based Chevron (CVX) refinery, has let go at least eight workers this month. The company says some workers were laid off for economic reasons, and others may have been terminated for just cause. But at least three of the workers have filed complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, alleging they lost their jobs because of their Latino ethnicity. The workers say although they are legally eligible to work, they were fired on July 2, following the July 1 implementation of a Mississippi state law cracking down on undocumented workers and their employers. The Mississippi law is the most extreme step that's been taken by proponents of tougher controls against illegal immigrants. These crackdowns by state and federal authorities are having their intended effect: They have combined with a sputtering economy to drive many immigrants out of the U.S., according to a forthcoming analysis by the Center for Immigration Studies. According to its study of monthly Census Bureau data, the illegal immigrant population has... Read the article.  Back to top Caught in the middle [management] Turnover among middle managers is high, and may become higher still in a tight economy when companies may put such positions on the chopping block. But middle managers are essential to a company's success in executing on strategy. Creating development plans for middle managers and increasing their participation in decision-making may help retention. Almost every company has them. They may number six or 6,000 and they all share the same job category -- middle managers. They are often referred to as the "glue" that holds companies together, bridging the gap between the top management team and lower level workers. They implement strategy and organizational changes, keeping workers engaged during both good and bad economic cycles. However, middle managers also can be a challenging group of employees to develop and retain. According to a 2007 Accenture survey of middle managers around the world, 20 percent reported dissatisfaction with their current organization and that same percentage reported that they were looking for another job. One of the top reasons cited was lack of prospects for advancement. "Many companies are seeing significant turnover in middle management ranks, and with significant turnover, they don't have the ability to execute strategy," says vice dean of Wharton Executive Education Thomas Colligan. "Top management can spend all their time creating strategy, but without someone there to implement it, where are you at the end of the day?" In addition to strategy implementation issues, the cost of turnover is extremely high for companies. Colligan says that one large partnership facing a 20 percent turnover rate did a calculation in which it concluded that for each 1 percent it could reduce turnover, it would increase partner earnings by $80,000. [Given the high cost of turnover and the importance of middle managers in implementing strategy and change, how do you "do the right things" to help those people move up?...] Read the article.  Back to top Forward to a Friend: Do you have a friend that would like to receive HRWatchsm? Perhaps you know a peer within your organization, or associate at a partner company that would benefit from applying to receive this publication. Inviting a friend to experience the benefits of joining the BusinessWatch Network is easy! 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