Knowing Why

Last week, I was interviewing a woman for a position on my HR team.  During the course of the interview, she said something that was really profound and important.  Here's what she said:

"I like to know why I am doing everything that I do.  If I am just completing a list of steps on a checklist and I don't know why each step is important, if something goes wrong in the middle, I won't know what to do to fix it."

This is so important and it was so refreshing to hear an HR professional say these words.  By simply changing our mindset to question why we do everything we do, not only will we be able to execute our job more seamlessly, our processes and approaches will improve.  And, more importantly, we will find a bunch of things we are doing today that really don't matter (stop doing those things).

And, in case you are wondering, she got the job.

Executive Coaching and Confidentiality

If you spend enough time in HR, eventually you'll have a situation where you will be tasked with finding an executive coach for one or more of the leaders within your organization.  As you evaluate coaches, there is a big issue that inevitably comes up in the conversations and it tells you a lot about the coach you are hiring.  That issue is confidentiality.  

There are two perspectives you will hear relative to confidentiality when you meet with executive coaches.  The first perspective comes from coaches who believe that the conversations they have with the individual being coached is confidential and that they will not share the specifics of that conversation, even with the CEO or HR exec who's overseeing the project.  In my experience, you generally hear this from coaches who either have academic and experiential background in psychology or who have studied a coaching model that is rooted in the science of counseling.  This kind of coaching approach makes me very uncomfortable.  Coaching in an organizational setting is about improving performance through development of the individual.  I don't want a coach who's going to coach on issues that should be referred to a psychologist (failing marriage, drinking problem, etc.).  That's not to say that these aren't important issues, but that's not what I'm hiring an executive coach to do.  

The second perspective on confidentiality in executive coaching says that while there may be certain details that are revealed through coaching discussions that aren't appropriate to pass along outside of the coaching relationship, the coach makes the individual aware up front that he/she will be sharing detailed progress reports with the project owner (CEO, HR Exec, etc.).  Since the organization is making a substantial financial investment for the coaching, they are the customer in this situation.  Likely, there are some pretty specific and high stakes outcomes expected from the coaching process, so the customer is entitled to updates along the way on what's being done and how things are progressing.  Good executive coaches understand the dynamics and will be able to accomplish the coaching goals without unnecessary conditions of confidentiality.  

Questions about Culture

I had the good fortune yesterday to spend a few hours with some really smart folks talking about organizational culture.  The conversation reinforced for me how complex the topic of culture really is.  While I'd love to report that I walked away from that conversation with some great learnings about culture that I could share with you here, that wasn't the case.  What I did come away with was a list of questions about organizational culture.

Here are some of the headline questions for me:

• What exactly is culture?  Is it something that actually exists or is it simply a way of describing the impact of the other stuff we do in our businesses?
• Does culture come before the people or do the people make up the culture?
• How do micro-cultures within departments and teams affect overall corporate culture?
• Does culture exist beyond the leader?  Said another way, does the leader always drive the corporate culture?
• Does culture drive brand or does brand drive culture?

If you have any of the answers or have some opinions to share one way or the other, I'd love to have that conversation here.  

10 Rules to Avoid Getting in Trouble with Email

Much has been written about email etiquette, but people still get it wrong everyday.  The biggest mistake people make with email is deciding when an email is appropriate and when it is not.  Because writing an email is a one way communication and it is impersonal, we tend be a lot tougher, bolder, and more forceful in it than we would be in other types of communication.  This can be incredibly dangerous and damaging to the relationships we have with the people on the other end of the email.

Here is a list of my rules of thumb for when to send an email and when to pick up the phone (or schedule a meeting).

1. If you are simply providing information or updates for review, email woks great.
2. If you are following up on a conversation with a summary of the conversation or requested information, email is good.
3. If you have a quick question that simply requests information or clarification, email is okay.
4. If there's any chance the recipient might misinterpret what you mean by your email, don't send it.
5. If you wouldn't say the same thing to the person's face that you are about to email, don't send it.
6. If the topic of the email is something that will require discussion, don't email.  (The only exception would be in situations where a meeting is already scheduled and you are sending the email to give the person a chance to prepare for the discussion).  
7. If it is an emotionally charged issue, never email.
8. If you want the conversation to be confidential, don't email.  
9. If you are providing negative feedback, don't email.
10. If you are providing recognition or kudos, email is okay but sometimes a phone call or in-person visit is better.

Email is a great tool that has become over-used and abused.  These are my general rules of thumb for keeping myself out of trouble with email.  I hope they will be helpful to you.  Let me know if I've missed anything or if you have any other rules of thumb that are helpful to you.