Wolf Gugler Executive Search

Author: Wolf Gugler

  • Business Continuity Planning; A Must!

    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.

     

  • The Culture of Conversations

    The Culture of Conversations

    I recently attended a presentation by Andrew Engelbrecht, Senior Associate with Arrowhead Consulting. He provided some thought provoking insights as they relate to corporate culture change and how to communicate it. This is my take on what he expressed to us:

    A conversation is an interchange of thoughts and ideas. That’s how you want to communicate with employees. Culture isn’t a program, but rather he way to approach work; think, feel, perceive and then act. Feedback is a part of the conversation, not the conversation itself. For example, when having a conversation on safety, it should target “what does safety mean to me?”

    • don’t dictate but engage the other party you’re communicating with. Make it a two-way dialogue.
    • After communicating the change, remind people vs instructing them. When your thoughts are viewed as dictatorial, expect nothing but pushback.
    • Elicit and welcome feedback, you should be open and receptive to an employee’s evaluation and criticism and foster open dialogue with no repercussions as a result. When a manager says they want to give feedback to an employee, it’s often construed as negative, e.g. “Can I tell you what’s wrong with you?” This fosters dislike and distrust.
    • GOOEY = Get Out of the Office and Engage with Your employees; schedule time to get away from distractions and allow some time dedicated to dialogue and getting to know one another better. You may learn that an employee is dealing with a personal issue at home that could be affecting their work, or a personal interest that may allow you to connect better with one another.
    • Every employee needs individual feedback. Congratulating a team is a very positive move but there’s nothing that takes the place of one on one feedback, so they know how their performance is being perceived. Provide your thoughts or observations and make it a conversation, not a speech.
    • Change usually brings the pendulum effect; people tend to think negatively about culture changes, so try to implement change in small doses.
    • Tell employees it’s ok to be less than perfect; a client told me that he welcomed an employee’s failure, assuming it resulted in a lesson learned…failure can lead to success!
    • Before you provide feedback, are you in a good place mentally? You’ll almost always project the mood you’re in.
    • Before conducting a performance review, give the employee the talking points you want to discuss, to allow them the opportunity to be prepared…otherwise, they may come in stressed and unprepared for what you must discuss with them.

     

    More often than not, people quit people; they don’t quit a company. Don’t be the reason a valued employee quits. Don’t procrastinate; follow through and do it.

    “The only difference between evolution and revolution is the time and pain it takes to make a sustainable change.”

  • Employee Development Survey Results

    Employee Development Survey Results

    Employee Development Survey

    Surveys continue to show that employees are concerned about their development and can decide to move on if they’re not receiving both adequate training and career opportunities with their employer. The following results are from an online poll we recently conducted; the 0>200 respondents are within the hardware and housewares retailer and supplier community.

    I am satisfied with the investment my organization makes in training and education (in %)

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    It’s good to see that over half of our survey respondents feel their current employer provides enough training to perform their roles effectively. Conversely, seeing 41% in some form of disagreement is concerning. Make sure you’re either providing training for your front line employees or providing an incentive for them to do it on their own, whether some kind of course completing bonus or tuition reimbursement, which is a strong benefit.

    I am satisfied that I have the opportunities to apply my talents and expertise.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    This question was directed to employees using their talents in their current role or on a project basis. It’s disconcerting to see that half feel they’re underutilized. This could be their perception and might be better determined in a two-way feedback review. Maybe you haven’t noticed they’ve been going above and beyond typical expectations? Encourage two way dialogue which should provide you with greater insights into what their triggers are. Not everyone is looking for a step up, but recognition in their current role can improve your chances of keeping a good employee and making them less receptive to a recruiter’s call.

    I am satisfied with the job-related training my organization offers.

    Survey results indicate over half agree that they receive adequate training as it relates to their current role. Still, one-third feel that they don’t receive the training that’s necessary to perform their job effectively. What can you do? Evaluate your current training that’s offered, supplement it with outside training (e.g. NRHA training programs for retail employees).

     

     

     

     

     

     

    The bottom line; if you’re in doubt about your current level of training, ask your employees for their input, whether in a performance review or by anonymous survey…you may be surprised at the results!

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