Samlingsplatser för utveckling

Traditionella företagsstrukturer är på väg att förändras. Hierarkier slås sönder. En chef är inte längre en gammal hederlig chef. Nu handlar det mer om förebilder, föregångare och inspirerande ledare. Medarbetare i nya generationer tar för givet att dom får det utrymme dom behöver i organisationen och att förutsättningar finns att jobba flexibelt. Trivs man inte, så drar man vidare till nästa ställe. De arbetsgivare som tillåter mest flexibilitet och utveckling, blir mest attraktiva. (Arbetsgivare/arbetstagare känns som mossiga ord... Numera handlar det mer om ett ömsesidigt utbyte av tjänster.)

När arbetsplatserna rent fysiskt och organisatoriskt får mindre betydelse, behövs andra typer av samlingsplatser. Det kan vara en hotell-lobby, där det av geografiska skäl är mest praktiskt att hålla dagens möten. Det kan vara en nätverkspromenad som ger nya kontakter och idéer. Flexibla kontorsutrymmen, butiker som upplåter hörnor för möten, bokklubbar, frukostmöten, mingeltillfällen, seminarier, spontana samtal över en kopp kaffe... Med den teknik som finns idag, kan många av oss jobba nästan var som helst, så länge vi har tillgång till dom människor vi behöver och som behöver oss.

Även om organisationsutvecklingen går framåt, finns det några mänskliga faktorer som jag tror att vi alltid bär med oss när vi väljer jobbmiljö. Känslan av sammanhang, behovet av kontinuitet, interaktion, utveckling och bekräftelse. Får vi det inte via en traditionell organisation, så skapar vi nya samlingsplatser som möter behoven.

Bananas

A Swedish documentary filmmaker - Fredrik Gertten - has made a film called "Bananas". It describes how the company Dole treats plantageworkers in Nicaragua. Based on this movie, the hamburgerrestaurant Max in Sweden choose to stop selling fruitsalads from Dole. Some other large foodcompanies have booked meetings with Dole in order to discuss the movie and the treatment of the workers.

This is very negative PR for Dole. I have not seen the movie Bananas, but the occurence indicates that the workers are treated in a bad way. Besides the important human aspect of this, the brand will absolutely be affected in a negative way. Treating people badly - especially from a superior position - is something that we do not accept anymore.

Photo: www.fotoakuten.se

I overheard a discussion

At the hairdresser the other day I overheard a discussion between two employees. They were commenting their fellow worker who overslept and turned up two hours late that morning - which of course caused disappointed and lost clients.

It was a negative conversation. I wasn´t interested - quite the other way actually. It gave me an impression of a disharmonic staff.

My haircut was quite good, but will it be overshadowed by my impression of the place? I don´t know yet. The problem for them is that the thought of changing to another hairdresser has even entered my mind.

Keep the internal issues to yourself. Your clients do not want to know about them. (Some may want to, but only in order to spread the word about your issues to others.)

Social media - I am pro

Some companies welcome the growth of social media. They use it in branding, marketing and when it comes to building opinion. One of them is Otto Drakenberg, CEO of Carlsberg Sverige. He is blogging twice a week, mainly in order to build understanding and commitment among the employees. He can tell that the blog has had a positive effect on the company and its´growth.

Other companies are opposed to the use of social medias. They see it as a phenomenon which takes valuable time from the employees.

I believe that social medias are a perfect window to the world, as long as you choose the channels which suit your purpose. If the marketing mix has no social media in it - rethink! Your company will loose part of the target group and its´image will soon be a bit oldfashioned.

I am pro social media. However, I believe that one must use them with a specific goal and a great deal of respect when it comes to expressions and choice of channels. Build an image which is synchronized with your goals and your values. Use a language and pictures that you can stand for. If you handle social media right, it is a great resource.

Are you an attractive employer?

Today another one of my articles about employer branding was published at driftig.nu
Come and visit. (Swedish)

Employer - to - do

When we build our employer brand, we can save time and effort by working in a systematic way. There are some actions that are especially effective ways of moving forward:

* Implement the vision of your company in your employees. Live as you learn. Make them proud ambassadors of your company.
* Find out why your employees are loyal and stay in the company and what it is that attracts new employees.
* Review your recruitment communication. What does your offer look like? What is your message and who do you turn to?
* Communicate the things that make you different from other employers, especially your competitors.
* Make sure that the recruitment follows and is a part of the marketingstrategy of your company.

Keep or loose your customers

I deal with two insurance companies - one for my private stuff and one for my company. One of them works great. The other one has consequently given me quite a bad impression through parts of the staff. Bad knowledge about the services and a scrubby attitude. Everytime I have to contact them, I seem to loose energy. I either need to make a change in my choice of insurance companies or in allowing it to spoil my good mood. Maybe both.

Isn´t it amazing how much the employees mean to a company! Every contact with a client is extremely important in order to keep selling and increasing results. In some cases it has to do with the employer brand. People may not feel at ease with their employer and it affects their own accomplishments. Then it may be time for them to search for a different employer. And sometimes the employer needs to search for a different employee. Go out and find some better sheep for the herd.

Be an attractive employer

A new article about employer branding has been published at www.driftig.nu. Come and visit. It is in Swedish.

A pool of talents

It is important for companies to secure their future growth. One way to do this is to identify strong talents in the organization, map out their abilities and driving forces and make sure that they have positions that keep them motivated.

When a keyperson leaves the company, it will be easier to find their succeeder if there is a pool of talents to search in.

Good ethics

33 % of the Swedish students think that good ethics is the most important issue when it comes to choosing a future employer, according to Universum. Talk about the importance of CSR...

"Do-gooder" or "good doer"

CSR - Corporate Social Responsibility - is growing as a concept. More and more companies realize that doing good for the world is both a way to take important responsibility, to strenghten the brand and to give the employees a deeper meaning with their work. Usually CSR is divided into ethical, environmental and social responsibilities.

In choosing what kind of CSR your company should work with - choose an area which is close to your core-business if possible. Maybe you have products or services which can be helpful in less favoured parts of the world.

Make sure that your employees are involved in the dialogue about your CSR-work. They will be your best ambassadors.

Being an attractive employer in tough times

In times like these it might be easy to forget trying to be an attractive employer. People will stay anyway, won´t they?

If you think like that, you need to change your perspective. This is the time when you need motivated employees. This is when you need people to talk about your brand in an enthusiastic way. Your employees are your best ambassadors. Keep them happy and motivated!

There are lots of things that you can do as an employer. Education, working environment, interesting projects, fellowship activities that don´t have to cost much... This is an important time for you to stand up for your employees and develop the company with their help. And when we´re back in the good times, your employees will be closer connected to you than ever before. Use this great chance to build your employer brand. Keep them up and running!

The best combination

Every company has a brand - more or less well developed.
Every employee has a personal brand - more or less well developed.

It is when these two brands fit together well, that a company grows fast and in a successful way. And it is when these two brands fit together well, that employees grow and contribute with extraordinary results.

It isn´t only when you hire people that you need to look for the right ones. It is also when you re-organise and people - more or less volontarily - get new assignments. If a person is degraded for some reason, you can almost count on reduced results due to decreased motivation. People need to be in the most optimal position for themselves, in order to contribute in the best way.



If you have certain employees who are more valuable to your company than others - take good care of them, expecially when it comes to their position, their mandates and their possibility to develop their skills and interests. And remember that employees who might not seem to be your best choice, could simply be in the wrong position. Find out where they would fit in best, and make a change if possible. Your companies success will gain on that - and so will the employee.

A perfect fit between employer and employee will be one of the keys to future success.