Work Rules: FINAL--Performance

Performance—Bock provides an in-depth look into the struggle that Google had with

performance assessment and why they separate it from development discussions. Pay: he suggests paying people “unfairly,” meaning that high performers deserve much more money than average workers; Bias: We’re all biased in one form or another, so remove it from the selection process. Check out the summary in the appendix of the book—in the “Work Rules” section.

New Kind of HR. In the “Afterword for HR Geeks Only,” the author provides a blueprint for this new kind of HR. This section will be critical to anyone trying to build a great company with great people. This book is a very worthy read as is this particular section.

HBR October: Post #4--Performance

Defend Your Research: If You Want to Win, Tell Your Team It’s Losing (a Little) by John Berger, p.36.

In an experiment, various groups competing with others in “another room” were given different kinds of feedback. One group was told that they were far behind, another that they were slightly behind, and a third that they were slightly ahead. Only the group that was slightly behind substantially (with statistical significance) picked up its rate of performance in the second round of competition.

A Leap of Reason: Post #3 - Funders can Help Outcomes

Invitation from the Periphery: Funders help organizations when they demand clarity of the change sought, how the organization will accomplish that change, what data is needed, how it will be collected, and then how it will be used.
a. “Leaders with an innate desire for good information are the ones most likely to make a real difference in the lives of those they serve.
b. The best performance-management systems help users do what they do better and make what they do easier.
c. The technology behind these systems is not nearly as important as the mindset of the leaders who put these systems in place.”

Get Rid of Performance Review: Post #4

What’s the answer to this dilemma? In short: The Performance Preview (PP). Rather than performance reviews (also called assessments, appraisals, or evaluations) that spend time focused on what went wrong, did not meet expectations, or marginally contributed, Culbert and Rout push for something more effective. Their alternative is called the performance preview (PP). This performance preview offers a new collaborative model that holds both manager and employee responsible for successd employee to come to the table as partners rather than adversaries.

The Three Laws of Performance

The Three Laws of Performance By Steve Zaffron and Dave Logan (Jossey-Bass, 2009)

Of the many books written about change, my thinking and executive coaching has been most impacted by the book The Three Laws of Performance by Steve Zaffron and David Logan (2009). The book’s basic premise is that you can change how people (and organizations) perform by understanding the role language plays. I strongly suggest that if your organization is feeling a little sluggish, sometimes uninspired, or even stuck, you read this book. Next, get relevant folks to read it, and then get them all in a room to talk about how it can apply directly to your organization. If people are honest and want a different future, then watch your organization’s world change!

THE TWO WOLVES
Before outlining the key sections of The Three Laws, I’d like to begin with an old
well- known Cherokee story that the authors tell in the later part of the book. I especially like this story because I think it summarizes, in a story, the heart of this book Also, I could see myself having this conversation one day with Jake Diaz, my own grandson:

An old Cherokee chief is teaching his grandson about life:
“A fight is going on inside me,” he said to the boy. “It is a terrible fight between two wolves.
“One is evil—he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, self-doubt, and ego.
“The other is good—he is joy, peace, love, hope serenity, humility kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith.
“This is the same fight that is going on inside you—and inside every person, too.”

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win?”

The old chief simply replied, “The one you feed.”