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The Offsite – A Book Review

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“The offsite” is s self-proclaimed fable of the Leadership Challenge (By Kouzes and Posner), an engrossing “fable” offering an insight into the thoughts and actions of a few industry individuals struggling with the mindful implementation of the leadership principles and how they perceive the leadership values in today’s corporate world.

The stage is set at a company offsite meeting in Arizona with seminars and presentations lined up by executive coaches discussing and interacting with those present on the five practices that form the heart of The Leadership Challenge:
-Model the Way
-Inspire a Shared Vision
-Challenge the Process
-Enable Others to Act
-Encourage the Heart

The key thought the author Robert H. Thompson shares with the readers is that leadership is not about position. It’s a personal choice that created a new way of being. The potential resides at our core, only revealed by a spark of passion.
What is unique about this book is that instead of discussing the theoretical aspects of leadership, it takes you through a learning process through examples, stories and objective behavioral analysis.

The characters in the book struggle with real life problems, work-life balance, clashing egos, and relationships at work and of course the struggle in being efficient leaders at their workplace. A point well emphasized in this book is on the difference between management and leadership; “Management is usually defined in terms of getting stuff done; process, structure, control and planning. Leadership, meanwhile, is usually defined as inspiring, encouraging, challenging, and growing people.”

The book presents us with some great learning by example of how human relations and people skills form the basis of a good leader. Though, it would have been great to see some technical and industry based examples on the application of the five practices at work, the whole book focuses more on how entwined and complex we are when it comes to managing and leading people. But again, and as always, human relations often are the most complex to manage – be it at work or in our personal lives, so perhaps maintaining the focus on people management and rising above one’s ego is a good idea to hone those skills which many managers lack.

The Leadership Challenge needs no workbook or supplement, and definitely it is not those “must-read” books once you have completely imbibed the message from the “leadership bible” by Kouzes and Posner; but for sure Robert H. Thompson provides us with an interesting reading of an offsite meeting which is very aptly quoted by the author as “that sometimes-agonizing vacation … the company offsite.” The characters in the book can be easily visualized and very much present in a corporate environment. The struggles to be a good leader with effective peoples skills is relevant to today’s upper management and learning by business illustrations and stories is the new trend that will be quite prominent in this century.
Also the brevity of a message and having a clear focus are essential to catch the readers attention, both of these goals are well accomplished by this book.

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Google Yourself often to see if Employers might find your Cyber-skeletons

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According to a report in careerbuilder.com, hiring managers checked out job candidates online and discovered these cyber skeletons:

  • 31% lied about qualifications
  • 24% were linked to criminal behavior
  • 19% bad-mouthed their former company
  • 19%boasted about drinking and doing drugs
  • 15% shared confidential information from former employers
  • 11% posted provocative photographs
  • 8% used an unprofessional screen name

If you Google yourself and find these cyber-skeletons, it is time to find out how you can erase your past mistakes and for sure learn from your slip ups. Also it is a wake-up note to all those on facebook and other social networking sites where you are ready to post anything at the press of a key before giving much thought that what you post now will be there for long. If you do not want your potential employer to know of such follies it is best to consider some solutions here to wipe off the digital dirt that might harm your chances of being hired:

It is good to know that there are ways to wipe off the mistakes online but the best lesson to take home is to be aware that what you post online today is very much public, show, tell and discuss only what you want others to know about yourself. A note to all Millennials and those in school and college: Being brash online today might hurt you in future, think before you write anything online (even a comment to someone else’s writing might linger on the web forever).

Have you come across ways to undo the online content which you wish had never been there?

Related Articles:

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Green Habits at Workplace

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“If there is to be an ecologically sound society, it will have to come the grass roots up, not from the top down.”
- Paul Hawken, The Ecology of Commerce

It is not easy being “green”. After all, we have been brought up “in and with” plastic, it is so convenient to forget to take our own eco-friendly totes to the stores when we always the option of paper or plastic. Agreed, not easy being green in our daily lives but at the workplace, it is much easily doable. I feel being “green” can be a part of your present job, how you react to the various practices and procedures of the company and take on the initiative towards actions supporting the green practices – such as turning off lights and computers as employees leave for home. Request the building management to lower the thermostat to bare comfortable levels. Employees must initiate a healthy green workplace that supports environment friendly habits and not wait for a higher management initiative or enforcement of such habits at the workplace. Also note that this could be very much in you favor as you would be in the list of those “valuable” employees who can contribute to cost-reduction for the employer, and that could very well put you in the list of “not-to-be-pink-slipped” category if and when a layoff happens!

However, the chances of implementation of a greener workplace will work better if organizations practice such green habits habitually and not only for a day or two in celebration of Earth day or otherwise. Even small contributions worldwide can help in reversal of global warming and help in improving the present deteriorating health of our environment.

Some tips on healthy green habits at work:

  1. Recycle paper
  2. Do not print out documents which can be easily read or edited online, paper is precious
  3. Use your own mugs and glasses instead of the foam and plastic cups
  4. Put computer on the sleep mode at a shorter duration
  5. If you feel that turning down the thermostat at your workplace can still result in comfortable working condition or even turned off at certain days, then inform your building management, do not assume someone else will. If you are wearing a jacket when it is scorching hot outside then something needs to be done; and if you are not wearing a jacket or some woollens inside when it is snowing outside then it is again the time to change the thermostat inside.
  6. What type of lighting is used in your office area? Can you propose/convince your management to consider planning on some areas of natural lighting when remodeling or planning on a new office?
  7. Place some plants around your work area to make it greener. Become An Earth Share Workplace Champion
  8. Bring lunch from home, takeouts and even eating at cafeteria means using plastic spoons, forks, foam cups and plates, all these adds to the garbage every day. Bringing your own reusable lunch containers and home cooked food fosters healthy eating habits as well.
  9. Turn off computer and lights when leaving work and if you see your office brightly lit in the middle of the night; it is time to act – time to report or request authorities to be on the “greener” side
  10. Carpool to work whenever possible and use public transport at least a few times a year, or bike to work if feasible. If your work permits and your manager supports your telecommuting request, go for it. According to a report: One person telecommuting just one day a week can reduce emissions by 400 pounds per year.
  11. If you practice green habits at work and home, tell and influence your colleagues and friends

Our Present Habits at Work

Research among more than 1,000 employees found the workplace behaviour of many sat in sharp contrast to their environmental efforts at home. While 94% said they switched off domestic lights whenever they weren’t using them and 85% said they switched off their home computer after use, only 66% turned off lights in the workplace and only 53% shut down their computer at the end of the day. When it came to making a hot drink, over half of those questioned (54%) said they would only boil the amount of water they needed at home, while fewer than 10% said they did the same at work. (Source: Guardian)

What the Organizations can do on their part to provide a Green Workplace

  1. Apply green building principles to your office buildings. They affect natural resources, land use, energy use, worker and public health, and community well being. With sustainable design – or green building – tools, the federal government can protect human health and worker productivity, reduce costs and risks, and build with greater responsibility towards future generations. Green Building principles lead to building in greater harmony with the environment, consciously sustaining and renewing natural resources. (http://ofee.gov/sb/sb.asp) (Source: http://www.earthday.gov/atwork.htm)
  2. Clean Green. Using environmentally preferable cleaning supplies helps reduce pollution. (http://www.epa.gov/epp/pubs/products/index.htm)
  3. Organize “cleaning weeks” and free recycling opportunities at your campus
  4. Plant more trees around your campus and organize “green Earth days” where employees can contribute an hour or more towards environmentally healthy practices – either helping in tree planting around the campus or in the city or contributing towards recycling and volunteer work towards nature conservation
  5. If you run an office cafeteria, encourage your kitchen staff to plant a vegetable garden if you have space around your office. Grow as much as you can, contribute to the environment
  6. Encourage employees to telecommute. Telecommuting presents opportunities to save fuel, time and less pollution in the environment. Many businesses are making it easier for employees to work at home, enabling office downsizing and a reduction in energy costs. At Sun Microsystems, 55% of employees have chosen to spend at least part of their time working from home, resulting in an estimated 29,000-ton reduction in carbon emissions. (Source: Environmental Defense Fund ad in BusinessWeek)
  7. Get rid of old office machinery which takes up lots of energy, replace them with energy efficient computers, laptops and solar heating for cafeteria etc.. Replacing old desktops monitors with an efficient laptop that displays the Energy Star logo, and setting it to go on sleep when not in use, can save about 500 pounds of carbon dioxide every year. (Source: rd.com)
  8. Install waterless toilets or those similar to WaterSaver Technologies developed by Aqus system which recycles sink water into toilet-flush water.
  9. Reduce company travel and encourage employees in different time zones and also those within the same country to video conference whenever possible. Telepresence, the high-definition videoconferencing systems developed by companies like Hewlett-Packard and Cisco Systems, enable virtual face-to-face meetings with natural audio and no delays. Cisco estimates that the use of Cisco Telepresence internally has saved nearly $80 million in travel costs, with a corresponding increase in productivity, faster decision making and improved quality of life for employees. (Source: Environmental Defense Fund ad in BusinessWeek)
  10. The company officials also can take initiative to organize monthly or bi-monthly “green work environment” meetings for all employees. In such meetings update and inform employees on how they can contribute to a healthy work environment and what the organization is doing to contribute to a greener workplace. Assign action items to groups, a meeting without action items and accountability has no meaning.
  11. Initiate installation of solar power at the office, even a small step can be a large contribution
  12. If possible use company buses and shuttles for employee commute, else provide incentives for carpooling and public transport usage
  13. Large retail offices and buildings must strive towards energy reduction, one of the companies in this area is SMARTCOOL SYSTEMS - according to then their green technology reduces the electricity consumption (Kwh) and maximum demand (KW) of air conditioning and refrigeration compressors.

Resources on being Green at Work:

  • Read more on these tips at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/atwork.htm
  • Looking for more tips to help the environment while at workplace? Perhaps a good resource would be the book titled: True Green @ Work: 100 Ways You Can Make the Environment Your Business, published by the National Geographic Society

How can you contribute or how are you contributing to the well being of our earth at your present workplace? Please Comment.

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Green Jobs and Careers

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Green Jobs and Careers are to the rescue of our fragile environment. But what are the green jobs and careers and how can you be part of these to contribute to the health of our planet?
All those jobs that support energy innovation, green technology and clean energy solutions come under green jobs and green careers. The term can be used in a very broad sense covering Alternative energy, Energy Saving Modules, Brushless Wound-Rotor Doubly-Fed Electric Machine, Green building, Green syndicalism, Hybrid vehicle, Solar power, Solar cells, Solar heating and technologies that retain sustainable development , for example recycling, water purification, sewage treatment, remediation, flue gas treatment, solid waste management, and renewable energy. (Source: Wikipedia)

A special report in CNN Money says “Earth friendly jobs aren’t just about organic farming and installing solar panels. The carbon traders, eco-bankers and corporate climate strategists are shaping the new green economy.
A report from the American Solar Energy Society estimates that 8.5 million people worked in the renewable energy and energy efficiency industries in 2006. The Apollo Alliance, a non-profit coalition of people from business, labor and the environmental movement working toward energy independence, estimates another three to five million green jobs could be created in the United States alone in the next decade.
But green collar jobs are not just about organic farming, installing solar panels or weather-stripping. ….green collar jobs are also about building entirely new businesses and upending markets.” Read more here.

So-called “green-collar jobs” are on the rise—the current tally of 8.5 million U.S. jobs in renewable-energy and energy-efficiency industries could grow to as many as 40 million by 2030, according to a November report commissioned by the American Solar Energy Society. (Source: Switching To Green-Collar Jobs).

Resources – Where to look for Green Jobs?

  • GreenCareers powered by MonsterTrack offers online recruitment service that focuses on green employment. They pitch their services by providing some tools and information on the green jobs and careers. I intend to research this website on value content soon and will update this post on some more resources on this topic.
  • AOL jobs in partnership with Careerbuilder presents some high paying jobs in environmental career
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US Recession and the Global Economy – Snapshots from the Media

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Job Cuts Maximum in last 2 Years in the US – recession fears are evident on the present US economy and global repercussions are not far behind, though already visible in some countries.
According to a recent report in the San Jose Mercury News: In March, construction companies cut 51,000 jobs, factories eliminated 48,000 positions, retailers cut payrolls by more than 12,000. Professional and businesses services lost 35,000 jobs and temporary help firms cut nearly 22,000 jobs. Financial firms chopped 5,000 jobs.
When government hiring was removed, the numbers looked even worse. Private employers shed 98,000 jobs in March.

Will US lead a global recession this year or the thriving economies of China and India can ride it out on their own?

Here are some snapshots from the print media around the world:

Economy is in recession, Bloomberg economist survey says:
The world’s largest economy will contract from January-June 2008, according to the median of 62 economists surveyed from April 2-8, 2008, Bloomberg News reported. A majority now predicts that the U.S. economy is, or will soon be, in a recession.
Economist Glen Langan, who did not participate in the survey, said Wednesday that aside from the oil / oil services sector and agricultural exports, there’s little that’s positive about the U.S. economy right now.
The IMF reckons that there is a 25% chance of the world economy growing by less than 3% in 2008 and 2009, the equivalent of recession, in its view. The origins of this crisis lie in the biggest asset bubble in history; financial markets have already suffered arguably their biggest shock for 80 years; and America is not the only developed economy suffering (Britain’s housing market, for instance, is showing the same symptoms as America’s—see article). But so far at least there is little evidence that the world economy is falling off a cliff.

The World Bank‘s just-published report, Global Economic Prospects 2008, predicts that the economies of developing countries like China and India “will play a crucial role in preventing the global economy from suffering a hard landing this year as the impact of the U.S. slowdown and turmoil in the credit markets continue…as those countries are taking over the baton of growth in the world economy.” (Guardian; World Bank’s report available here.) (Source: sfgate.com)

An article from China-based McKinsey & Company consultants reports: A slowdown in the U.S. economy won’t have that much impact on China’s continued fast-paced growth. Domestic demand in China, led by the upswing in construction, investments in infrastructure, and strong consumer spending, will keep the economy moving along just fine. The export sector in China, when measured as value-added, contributes about 9 percent to GDP, according to UBS analysis, and employs about 7 percent of the workforce. Reduced demand in the U.S. could result in slower growth for some Chinese manufacturers, and perhaps trigger some employment pressure, particularly on China’s east coast. But the overall impact is unlikely to be major.

In an article in Harvard Business, the author B V Krishnamurthy says: It would be naïve to imagine that a recession in the United States would have no impact on India. The United States accounts for one-fourth of the world GDP and any significant slowdown is bound to have reverberations elsewhere. On the other hand, interdependencies between the US economy and emerging economies like India and China has reduced considerably over the last two decades. Thus, the effect may not be as drastic as would have been the case in the 1980s.
Much has happened between then and now. The Indian economy has shown a robust and consistent growth trajectory and the projection for 2008 is 9%. Indian exports to the United States account for just over 3% of GDP. India has a healthy trade surplus with the United States. In other words, the effects of this recession on India may be quite distinct from those of the past.
He presents some interesting statistics in support of the statement.

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Post Layoff 5 Steps to a Successful Comeback

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1. Conquer Negative Thoughts Post Layoff
Identify the mental blocks that are holding you back and fight them. To be a winner, think like a winner. To be successful, imagine your success.

  • Fight your fears and apprehensions and defeat them. Develop a winner’s attitude. Know that you can do it. As you think, so shall you be.
  • Work towards defeating self-doubt and negative emotions.
  • Get rid of procrastination. It is not the time to brood or feel depressed on the layoff, it is time to act. Do not hide under the shadows of embarrassment or anger and delay the process of reinventing yourself. Every day and every minute is precious.

“Do not hold mental pictures of difficulties and failures, but lift your mind above them and visualize powers and achievements. When you elevate your thoughts into the area of visualized attainment you look down on your problems rather than from below up at them and thus you get a more encouraging view of them. Always come up over your problems. never approach a problem from below.”
- Norman Vincent Peale

2. Plan your Job Search Process
No one else is going to do it for you, you are in charge of your career and a layoff must not get you down. Unless you get into the action stage, all preparation remains meaningless. Knowing is not enough, you must act.

  • Initiate an action plan – where all can you use your networking skills? Which companies would you want to work for?
  • Initiate a marketing plan. How well can you market yourself – how can you benefit your future employers. Remember it is not how great your skills are but how can you use your skills to benefit others.
  • Initiate mentoring or professional advice to accelerate your success.

For every minute spent in organizing, an hour is earned.

I learned that we can do anything, but we can’t do everything.. at least not at the same time. So think of your priorities not in terms of what activities you do, but when you do them. Timing is everything.
- Dan Millman

3. Confidence, Enthusiasm and a Positive Attitude
Nothing is accomplished without enthusiasm. Your enthusiasm and attitude will keep your spirits high during the negative or dormant stages of your job search.

  • Positive thoughts support enthusiasm and vice-versa. Be positive. Remain enthused. Develop a positive attitude. You need a positive and a fighting attitude right from the beginning of the job search process to the very end of the job negotiation process. Keep a positive outlook and boost your attitude.
  • Seek inspiration from powerful writing and even your previous achievements. Seek inspiration and enthusiasm from your kids and your family.
  • Howsoever uncertain and rocky the road might seem now, remain motivated by reminding yourself of the forthcoming success. But don’t hold on happiness until you get to that next milestone, enjoy the present.

Confidence can get you where you want to go, and getting there is a daily process. It’s so much easier when you feel good about yourself, your abilities and talents.
- Donald Trump

4. Enhance your Skill Set – Research new Opportunities
Acquire new skills or certifications that get readies you for the job market or if stepping into a new career.

  • Network to acquire information on available opportunities and to build your networking list. Talk to someone you know who is working in the area of your expertise or interest or explore others in their network. Do not stay cocooned in your post-layoff shell, it is time to network smartly. You may know at least 30-50 people in your area of residence – including your family friends and neighbors, let them know that you are looking for a job. in turn they know at least 30-50 contacts and thus your network grows. There is a higher probability of getting a job through a personal network then through the job boards alone.
  • Gather information on jobs and careers from the online job boards, classifieds, newspapers, trade magazines and your local employment offices. Get rid of any negative preconceived notions on a particular job or career. Be ready to explore new and unknown careers and options. Have a broad outlook, when you open up to possibilities, possibilities open up to you.

When I started out in business, I spent a great deal of time researching every detail that might be pertinent to the deal I was interested in making. I still do the same today. People often comment on how quickly I operate, but the reason I can move quickly is that I’ve done the background work first, which no one usually sees. I prepare myself thoroughly, and then when it is time to move ahead, I am ready to sprint.
- Donald Trump

5. Power up your Resume – get ready to Market yourself
It is time again to revamp and tailor your resume to the positions you are applying for. Devote extra time to power up your resume that shines above the rest. With limited hiring during a downturn or recession, you have to market yourself in a unique way to get noticed.

  • Create an online Portfolio if you already don’t have one. Creating a web presence might help those in certain careers but is essential for those in careers:
    o Website graphic designer
    o Web developer / Webmaster
    o Web content developer / manager
    o Media publicist
    o Illustrator
    o Interior decorator
    o Fashion Designer
    o Animation specialist
  • Update your online resume. Employers and hiring managers are looking for active resumes which have been recently posted. You have a greater possibility of coming up on an employers search if your resume has been updated in the last 5-12 days. Employers do not have time to waste on a dormant resume which might indicate that you could have possibly found a job but forgot to remove your resume online.
  • Emphasize your skills, personal attributes and previous experience; use the keywords and terminology relevant to the job description. Grab attention by stating quantifiable results of your previous experience.

Market yourself first through your resume and cover letter and then act as your personal sales representative at the interview. As would any customer analyze a product or service before buying; you are closely scrutinized during the process of resume selection and during and after interviews. Your skills are the core but how you package yourself depends a lot on your efficient abilities to market yourself.

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The Leadership Challenge – A Book Review

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In their own words, Kouzes and Posner effectively convey the message of this enlightening book: The fundamental purpose of The Leadership Challenge is to assist people- managers and individual contributors alike – in furthering their abilities to lead others to get extraordinary things done. The Leadership Challenge is written both to strengthen your abilities and uplift your spirits. We intend it to be practical and inspirational.
I very much agree and the authors have accomplished this goal – I have enjoyed reading this book and over years will continue to quote from the exemplary tangible wisdom this book shares on the very basic framework of essential leadership qualities.
The indispensable strength which defines a good leader are very logically presented, right from practical wisdom of managing people to fostering collaborations.

The Leadership Challenge, 4th Edition by James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner presents numerous examples of how successfully some leaders in their organizations have implemented the fundamental leadership qualities such as setting an example for the constituents, inspiring and communicating their vision to the employees and so forth.

Kouzes and Posner emphasize the need for effectively communicating the vision of your company to your constituents. I was quite impressed with the sections: Envision the Future and Strengthen Others. Most often as employees of a large organizations employees understand only what their particular division is doing and the implementation of the present project and planning of the next one. What they miss out is on the bigger picture, the vision of the company, how do they feel part of the organization and how are they valued for their work towards achieving the larger vision.
On this topic the authors say: Your constituents can’t act like owners and provide leadership if they fundamentally don’t understand how your business, agency, company, product or program operates. This goes way beyond clear visions and goals into the interior domains of operations. To really understand the critical organizational issues and tasks, they need to be able to answer such questions as; Who are our most important customers, clients, suppliers and stakeholders? How do they perceive us? How do we measure success? What has out track record been over the past five years? What new products or services will we initiate in the next six years?

It is a book that is to be revisited periodically by one and all. The ideas and thoughts are communicated quite simply and they are very basic to any leadership role, but at times what is most evident and simple slips off our practice. A must read for someone who is at the managerial position or a CEO or founder of a company or someone who wishes to excel and hone their leadership skills.

Read more about the book at: http://www.leadershipchallenge.com/

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Careerbright Blog Features on Alltop

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It is great to be associated with the ace blogger and VC Guy Kawasaki and the association is in reference to his latest venture Alltop which features the Careerbright blog on it’s Career site. Providing a one stop, single page, dynamic, theme-based article link collection; Alltop comes as a refreshing uncluttered website in the age of information overload.

As the website says: You can think of an Alltop site as a “dashboard,” “table of contents,” or even a “digital magazine rack” of the Internet. To be clear, Alltop sites are starting points — they are not destinations per se. The bottom line is that we are trying to enhance your online reading by both displaying stories from the sites that you’re already visiting and helping you discover sites that you didn’t know existed. In this way, our goal is the “cessation of Internet stagnation.”

Another of Guy’s idea on how to change the world, good one for sure..waiting to see what is next!

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Be Self Directed and Self Motivated when Working from Home

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Janice B. works for a large software firm and has been working from home for over 10 years and has found the arrangement perfect for her. Being a single parent for almost 15 years she needed to live near her extended family for support. In her words, “Working remotely has allowed me to live where it worked for my family and yet still do really challenging work for great high tech companies. My company pays for my second (phone) line and my internet connection. I don’t charge back office supplies, etc. but that is a personal choice. Our company has a formal work from home program and almost 20% of our workforce is remote. I’m more remote than most as I’m over 3 hours from our closest office.”

Janice emphasizes on the need to be self-directed and self-motivated to be able to work from home completely. She says, “I’ve “worked” with colleagues who thought they could have their toddlers at home without daycare. But you can’t, by the way, if you want to do a good job.”

She considers herself extremely lucky to having worked with many supportive bosses who have faith in her and her work. She travels once every 6-8 weeks to connect with her boss, co-workers and other colleagues. She says, “I find this really important to helping me stay connected with my company. I also pick up the phone, just to chat, at least a few times a week.”

The biggest struggle Janice sees in working from home is not being in touch personally with co-workers and not having people to interact with during her work days. She says, “Sometimes I’m not out of the house all week, unless I make an effort, especially during the winter months.”

 What are your tips? Please Comment. 
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