Wolf Gugler Executive Search

Author: Wolf Gugler

  • End of Year Performance Appraisals; Don’t Dread Them

    End of Year Performance Appraisals; Don’t Dread Them

    When it comes to performance appraisals, do your employees have to hound you for one? Is it just a paper processing exercise in order to give them an annual salary increase, or is there a true developmental purpose behind it?

    One of the most overlooked management areas is answering the employee who asks, “How am I doing?” Answering that and providing meaningful feedback is one of the best things you can do to ensure they do a good job for you and become a productive and loyal employee. Here are a few ideas to make this a positive experience,one that both sides look forward to.

    Prepare:

    ·        review previous performance appraisals, complimentary letters, course transcripts, and records of performance, discipline, and everything that relates to the employee’s performance.

    ·        Use a performance appraisal form to keep the meeting ontrack. Organize your papers or presentation in the sequence you intend to cover them. Ideally, use a self-evaluation form given to the employee in advance of the meeting (for a complimentary sample, clickhere). It’s a fact that people are usually harder on themselves than others are and will typically work harder at resolving these self-identified issues.

    ·        Make sure this takes place as a two-way dialogue, not a debate.

    Venue:

    • ensure the setting is private and distraction-free. Don’t take phone calls and let the person know what time the meeting will start and end.
    • Ensure the room layout conveys a relaxed atmosphere. A restaurant is inappropriate; a meeting room, ideally with armchairs is much better than sitting across the bosses desk from him/her. If you’re using a conference table, sit at 90 degrees from one another vs. across the table in what can be perceived as a barrier to open conversation.

    Introduction:

    • start with a smile, greet your employee by name and thank them for joining you. Chances are they’re nervous and have sweaty palm syndrome. Set the scene; explain the process and encourage two-way dialogue and discussion. A glass of water is a nice touch too.

    Review and evaluate;

    • review the employee’s tasks and objectives that were set out last year—and stay focused. Use facts and figures, not “woulda-coulda-shoulda” excuses or unsubstantiated anecdotal stories. Stay objective and avoid being perceived as biased; this will gain you far more credibility and effort from the employee in the long run.
    • Resist appraising them based on your own style; stick with the facts and figures. Review each item, communicating the standard of measurement or performance being used and they fared; a sliding scale of 1-5 is easy to follow. If you don’t have these facts in hand prior to the meeting, don’t wing it; reschedule the meeting until you do have the data. If a dispute arises about a specific area, hear them out and then plan a follow up discussion to allow you to obtain more information to make a factual judgment.

    Devise a mutually agreed-upon action plan.

    • The plan should include a brief job description with responsibilities, strengths and constructive areas of development, a short/medium/long term action plan and the individual’s career goals and objectives. Make it realistic and attainable. Agree on what support the company will provide to ensure the employee’s success…additional training, courses, workshops and any other company-provided assistance. If the company expenditure requires your Supervisor’s approval, make sure you have this prior to the meeting.

    Close on a positive note.

    • Thank the employee for their input, and make sure they know you look forward to working with them to ensure the next appraisal meeting is just as positive, or more than this one was. Let them know your door is open if they have any further questions, and this is meant to be a win-win situation.

    Document, document, document!

    • Record all primary points discussed and agreed-to performance issues, actions required to rectify them and the agreed-to timetable involved. Copy all appropriate departments and maintain a copy in the employee’s file.

    Following a plan similar to this one should help you develop loyal employees who are both topperformers and accountable for their actions.

    Next month; appraisals from the employee’s perspective.

    Wolf is President, Wolf Gugler & Associates Limited, specializing in executive search and management appraisals for clients throughout North America and the Caribbean with offices in the United States and Canada. He can be reached at (888) 848-3006 or email, [email protected]. Web site: www.wolfgugler.com.

  • Resigning? Make it as stress-free as possible

    Resigning? Make it as stress-free as possible

    You’ve landed a new job (maybe I facilitated it; after all, it’s what I get paid to do!) …congratulations! Even though you researched your new employer and are excited about your new challenge, you probably are experiencing some fear of change. Why add more stress thinking about telling your current employer you’re resigning?

    Here’s a short list of ideas to get through that process in a positive way so you can move on and up!

    • First, make sure your new role is signed and sealed; once you resign, you don’t want to have to change your mind.
    • Tell your boss first and do it in person. It can seem easier to do it via email, but if you’re looking to leave on good terms and receive a good reference in the future, face to face is best.
    • Have your resignation letter prepared; keep it simple. Thank the company for the opportunity to work there and just state you’re leaving for a new challenge. “It’s not you, it’s me”.
    • Your current employer will appreciate more notice than less; at least two weeks is standard. Conversely, don’t make it too long; there’s a greater chance of resentment building the longer it goes on.
    • Plan how you’ll spend your notice period; write it down and offer it to your boss. It will show thoughtfulness and respect, and despite the fact you’re moving on, you’re going to try and make it as painless as possible for your current employer.
    • DON’T get into a long-winded discussion as to why you’re leaving. It might end up with ill feelings. If you receive a counteroffer, my advice is to reject it; in my experience, the majority of those that accept a counteroffer leave or are terminated within six months. It’s like telling your spouse you want a divorce and then saying, “I changed my mind.” There’s a breach of trust that is very difficult, if not possible to overcome. Chances are your employer is simply buying time keeping you around until they locate your replacement, so they can part company with you on their timetable, not yours.

    A final thought; in Canada, if you resign and your employer accepts your resignation, there’s no going back…it’s final.

    Copyright 2018 Wolf Gugler Executive Search, all rights reserved. 888-848-3006

  • Management Digest-September, 2018

     

    Business continuity planning; a must!

    With the advent of hurricane season, it brings to mind just how important it is to have your business prepared for any sort of business interruption that may arise. It could be weather related (tornado, hurricane, earthquake, flood), man-made (arson, bombing, active shooter) or technological (ransomware, hacking, system crash/data loss). No matter whether your business is large or small, you need to be ready for unexpected events. We spoke with two Canada and US-based industry preparedness professionals in retail and production environments for their three key insights into what to consider in developing your company’s business continuity plan:

    Matt Klucowicz, Business Continuity Planner, Canadian Tire, shared these thoughts:

    Champions

    Maybe your experience has been different than mine, but usually when I tell somebody at a party what I do for a living their first answer is “Oh, cool!” and then as they realize what I actually said, “What is that?” Chances are very good that the rest of the people in your organization are going to have a similar level of knowledge about what you do, and in a world of deadlines, meetings, and constant rescheduling, they aren’t going to be keen on meeting with mysterious people with an unknown function. Even at the best of times when they know exactly who you are, they might not “have the time” for you, and you’re part of a long list of people with hat in hand who needs to ask this very important person for a moment of their time.

    How do you get around it? Well having a champion helps. It’s a very rare organization where people don’t have an innate awe of people a couple of strata above them, and when the ‘big ask’ comes from THAT PERSON, everybody drops what they’re doing and gets it done. So, one of the biggest helps to any Business Continuity program is having somebody who has the muscle to get everybody on board, and to make sure people are responsible for their portions of the program. Be aware that you’re going to be working with this person a lot and you will have to be able to advise them on the finer points of business continuity, but if you get this relationship right, you are going to see some real progress in your program.

    Make Linkages with Other Teams

    The BIA process can be a real game-changer for different teams in your organization. We live in the Information Age and businesses are always craving it and you are going to be collecting valuable data that other teams simply do not have the time to collect. If you are struggling for support or resources, start building those relationships and see who else wants this data too. Since so much of business continuity is built on good relationships in the first place, the process of reaching out is helpful in its own right. You would be surprised where good data can lead, and if you are the gatekeeper of it, you have a better set of cards in your hand.

    Just Start

    If you are a freshly minted BCM program it can be daunting. There are a lot of factors to consider. Where do you start? What groups do you cover? How much detail do you need? Perfect business continuity is never perfect the first go around, but with each successive round you can be a bit better. Refreshing BIAs, plans, and exercises are all part of the lifecycle, and finding new things to update and improve is beneficial. Forward planning and strategy is critical but I would encourage people to think of it more as a process of a cycle of continuous improvement, than one of refinement where there is a perfect end-state. The river we stepped in is not the river we stand in after-all, so go out and get to work!

    Jillian Sulley, Emergency Management Program Supervisor, Devon Energy offered these insights:

    • Know your company’s value chain and where disruptions along that value chain could cause stop gaps. Think about the plumbing in your house.  If the pipes become clogged, you may end up with a not so convenient backup in your home.  The same thing is true of your company’s operations.  If part of your supply chain is removed, know how that may back up your entire operations or stop it in its tracks.  Without alternate plans for diverting these  ‘clogged pipes’, your company may sustain substantial and costly downtime or shut in of operations.
    • Keep it simple and flexible. Do not overcomplicate your plan. However, when developing a Business Continuity Plan, it is important to consider all stakeholders along your value chain and ensure that all hazards to that value chain are considered as well.  Ensure you have the right mix of people at various levels of leadership and with varying skill sets.  Each area of the company will bring a different perspective to the table.  Also remember that building a BCP plan can be a marathon….not a sprint.
    • Test your team’s knowledge of the plan through the execution of a well-designed exercise. There is theory to exercise design.  A well-coordinated and thought out exercise will provide an opportunity for your team to experience how he/she may respond during time of operational disruption.   And remember, your exercise scenario does not always have to start at the point of incident.  What if your exercise started on the 3rd day of the incident….or day 30?

     

    Another thought:

    • The gut of your plan should focus on capabilities of your company and the PROCESS your company will follow regardless of the scenario. Once you have a process in place that may be replicated for all hazards, then your company can consider the specific tactical or detailed concerns of known hazards.

     

     

    You can download a video-based tutorial on the steps to take in developing your Business Continuity Plan by clicking here. A text tutorial is available here.

    “Know your company’s value chain and where disruptions along that value chain could cause stop gaps.”

    candidate resume tips; freshen up your resume & Linkedin profile

    Fall is usually a busy time for both employers to intitiate searches for key employees to start in the new year, and also for candidates to get active in their career search. If you haven’t changed your resume in a while, here are some tips for you:

    • If you haven’t added to your resume in a while, look at your work history; do you have two lines about your current employer? Expand what it is you’re doing now and minimize your work history that’s over ten years old. Employers may want to follow your career chronology but what you accmplished yesterday is much more important that what you achieved in 2005. Don’t forget to brag, whether it’s individual or group successes you participated in…business wins, cost reductions or awards all count.
    • Your LinkedIn profile can be a call to action for an employer to reach out to you or pass you by. It doesn’t need to be as comprehensive as your resume, but it needs to go beyond just who employed you and when. Don’t forget to ensure your resume and LinkedIn profile match in terms of work history; don’t put up a red flag when they read that you worked for company X in your profile but it’s ommitted in your resume.
    • Add additional training, whether industry or functional expertise and soft skills to your info. It’s beneficial for an empoyer to know that although you have an undergrad degree, you’ve worked on a continuous skills update. Computer skills (e.g MS Project efficiency) are very important in today’s data-driven environments.
    • Statistics show that LinkedIn profiles with pictures garner more attention that those that don’t. I’m not suggesting that it’s a beauty contest, but the viewer can connect with you visually in that case. Make it business-appropratie; pictures lounging with a cocktail on the beach or at the daddy-daughter dance might impress your Facebook friends but not a potential employer.

     

    in the merchandising field in the GTA?

    We’ve been retained by a great employer whose business is retail construction resets and merchandising to add a competent Project Manager to their team. Great opoprtunity to focus on one large account, Canada’s dominant home improvement retailer. Want more info? You’ll find it on our web site, www.wolfgugler.com by clicking on the “Careers” page.

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