Group or Team?

Do you work as a group or within a team? The term "team" is overused in organizational environments. I have the advantage of observing a variety of workplace venues, and in my travels into the inner corporate and government sanctums, I witness many more groups than teams, despite the names of the work divisions. One of my coaching clients speaks of his colleagues whose supervisor calls them her "team," almost as if she wishes it and wants it to be, it will. As she micromanages her department by insisting ALL emails go through her, she misses the opportunity to build trust among the members. An employee may respond with "Am I so incompetent that you need to review every communication I produce?" (In responsible management, a supervisor may want certain emails copied with their name, such as upward messages, yet all email seems a waste of time for veteran and competent employees.) One valued and essential charateristic of a team is trust. If the leader displays a lack of trust through micromanaging all the employees, it may be impossible to even forge a group into a team. Groups are made from the outside-- Person A, Person B, Person C, and Person D are assigned to "work together" on Task X. If each person works independently toward the Task completion and under the micromanaging supervisor, the task may get accomplished--but not by a team. A newsworthy insight: Teams are made from the inside out! Shared struggles, strengths, and successes; member accountability; and seamless communication among the members and managerial support for resources will hone a group into a team. The advantage is a team is more efficient than a group. Simply calling a group a team does not make a team.

An Attitude or a Language Adjustment?

Professionals in Human Resource circles have known for a long time that we cannot dictate attitude in the workplace. We can influence it, but not force it. Too often I hear, "So-and-so needs an attitude adjustment!" If the attitude is manifesting inappropriate behavior and/or language in the workplace, then a change is advised--but not in attitude! The individual is entitled to his/her own attitudes according to the American way of life and our diversity guidelines in business. It is the observable behavior, including language use and non-verbal actions, that must be monitored. Clear expectations of acceptable behavior and language must be modeled and enforced to maintain morale and order in the workplace. Yet, we must also remember the two irrefutable areas of individual processing are experiences and feelings. So, discounting either will create a wall of attitude in the other person. Frequently, our experiences and feelings intertwine with our behavorial and linguistic choices. Consequently, helping an individual maintain his/her integrity and dignity through the "adjustment intervention" demonstrates clear expectations to the entire workforce: You have a right to your attitude, your experiences, and your emotions; you do not have a right to behave, speak, or write in a way that abuses anyone else's rights.

Customer Service Reviews or Manipulations?

In the past couple of years I have had encounters with Angie's List and Better Business Bureau that make me question their purpose. Both of these businesses have built their reputations on facilitating customer responses to a variety of businesses-for-hire. Angie's List claims to serve potential customers in finding reliable service and product providers who cannot sway the publicity; yet, when I purchased a vehicle, the dealership wanted to reward me with free oil changes if I agreed to post a good review! Investigating the service, I discovered that Angie's List wanted me to pay them a fee to read or to post information. What would keep anyone from posting a fake review for personal benefit--positive publicity for one's own company or for negative publicity for a competitor? Another time, I uncovered a scam out of an operation in NYC and contacted the BBB there. The scammers threatened to harm my credit rating if I did not pay them what they wanted. The BBB could not help because the scammers would not reply to the BBB. Soon after, the BBB notified me that they recorded my claim as their success because I had not continued to follow-up, and, therefore, must be content with the outcome! In another BBB encounter with the KC office, a client's former customer made a bogus claim. I agreed to mediate the claim through the BBB. The customer lied about the circumstances of the claim and the content of the signed contract to the BBB. Regrettably, attorneys were required and my client settled out of court just to relieve his dwindling resources caused by attorney fees and days of lost work. The BBB said they would rate my client's business a B+ for three years as a result of the claim. I asked why not an A and was told that that might happen if my client were to join the BBB for a fee. Again, the BBB took credit for a successful outcome. Then the BBB called to ask me to pay them for my company to join! The manipulation of customer service expectations makes me question the validity of these sites. Beware!

Confusing Word Usage in Technical Business Writing

Technical Writing actually resides under the umbrella of Business Writing. Many businesses have technical content or components in our technological age, so writing to coworkers, team members, vendors, customers, clients, and any others associated with the business must be deliberate: we cannot write on remote control or automatic pilot. We must make conscious decisions, differentiated from habit. Consequently, the following list of 10 confusing combinations of words and how they are used correctly and effectively will help you write those technical communications:
that (restrictive: only one qualifies) vs. which (nonrestrictive: one among many),
effect (a result or to make happen) vs. affect (an emotive state or to influence),
result (highly persuasive word choice) vs. outcome (a desired learning demonstration),
its (possessive pronoun similar to hers, his, ours, yours) vs. it's (a contraction for it is),
your (possessive pronoun for you) vs. you're (a contraction for you are),
then (a time reference) vs. than (a comparison reference),
fewer (used with count nouns) vs. less (used with amount nouns),
number (used with count nouns, such as envelopes) vs. amount (used with non-count nouns, such as mail),
a number (an undisclosed count) vs. the number (the exact count), and
because of (direct cause-effect reference) vs. due to (a contributing-factor reference).
Knowing these confusing combinations will give you the confidence to "say what you mean, and mean what you say" (or write)!

Words Tell Our Emotional State

Recently, I watched an elderly man, Joe, make a courageous decision to have open-heart surgery to "buy" five more years of life. He flew through the surgery with no complications and sped through recovery better than most men 20 years younger the doctor said. Now it was time for the long rehabilitation, including core body exercises. At the beginning, Joe said the physical therapists were "abusive and agressive." Months later he called them his "angels." How often our words will communicate our emotional well-being and adjustment. Do you work hard at checking your words in your mind before you write or speak them? Do you read and listen behind the words for the emotional context and content? We would all become better communicators if we would test the emotional filters of the words of the moment.

The Levels of Influence and Leadership

When thinking about leading and influencing your followers, consider these four levels:
Transformation: This highest level integrates personal values and principles with others' commitments. Leaders aspire to this approach and followers are inspired by it.
Transference: This next level connects people with their experiences and expectations based on the leader's traits and style. The "paternal" style in hierarchial organizations is that of a distant, protective leader. The "maternal" style is that of a nurturing parent who develops character through lessons and boundaries. The "sibling" style in flat organizations is that of social and professional peers influencing one another. Leaders of both genders can apply any of the three styles of transference. (Michael Maccoby: "Why People Follow the Leader: the Power of Transference," 2004)
Transaction: The second lowest level of influence simply facilitates an action in the easiest way possible or by eliminating objections. This can be a powerful sales technique.
Compliance: This lowest level of influence focuses on laws, policies, procedures, and their consequences should they not be heeded. There is a reason why organizations have Compliance Officers! Nonetheless, there can be a void of caring or connecting--the focus is on doing what must be done, or else!
During your next meeting, decide which action items need which level of influence. Then align your leadership approach with the best choice for the situation and for your reputation.

The Behavioral Science of Persuasion

In doing research and editing for a client who is writing a book on business communication, I came across an article published in the Harvard Business Review: "Harnessing the Science of Persuasion" by Robert B. Cialdini (2001). He culled the following six principles from research that has been around for a while.
1. "The Principle of Liking: People like those who like them." So find similarities and offer praise.
2. "The Principle of Reciprocity: People repay in kind." So give to get.
3. "The Principle of Social Proof: People follow the lead of similar others." So use social evidence and experience (peer pressure and peer power).
4. "The Principle of Consistency: People align with their clear comitments." So identify values.
5. "The Principle of Authority: People defer to experts." So specialize and seek out those who specialize in their expertise.
6. "The Principle of Scarcity: People want more of what they can have less of." So use deadlines and target dates to create a sense of closure, and to create a sense of reward and releif for those who act quickly.

So what? Observe and listen to the infomercials where many of these principles of persuasion are at play. Then be serious and genuine in your approach as you influence people in acting and thinking as you want. Furthermore, be nice. Be kind. Be fair. Be true. And refrain from yelling at your audience!