Making a Wireframe for Your Team to Maximize Talent Conversion: What Managers Can Learn from UX

User Experience.

In consumer businesses, UX is traditionally viewed as a way to analyze and produce experiences that drive consumers toward an end goal. The focus of UX is largely external. The motivation for investing in UX is conversion, and, ultimately, the bottom line.

Let’s flip UX on its traditional head. I believe that managers can significantly benefit by viewing UX as an internal measure.

Today at Internet Week New York (#IWNY) I attended a presentation by Sarah Blecher of Digital Pulp who presented a more advanced definition (based on crowdsourcing) of UX:

It’s the moment when content, design, and interaction come together and how the user feels about it.

Imagine that—users have feelings, and businesses need to pay attention to them.

The same is true for your employees.

Here’s how you can use the three core principles of UX—content, design, and interaction—to transform your team’s experience in the workplace to achieve higher productivity, enhanced morale, and accelerated conversion of talent to profit.

Content

In UX, content typically refers to the text, image and video elements on a site. When you’re dealing with the experience of your organizational teams, the content pieces are the task at hand and the available resources.

If you want to set your teams up to optimize employees’ creative capital, you need to make sure their experience is as seamless as possible. When charging a team with a task, make sure that all of the information members need to complete the task is in a central location.

Communicate the output expectations clearly, and present, up front, the resources available.

If you’re not sure what resources are available, provide parameters. Creativity thrives in the face of constraint.

Design

When most think of UX, they think immediately of design. Design, however, is only a part of the equation. In organizations, employee design is all about the environment—physical, social and emotional.

If you want to maximize human capital, provide an environment that is conducive to the needs and personalities of your team members. This is where a high amount of EQ (emotional intelligence) comes into play.

As a manager, you need to know the fears, stresses, and motivations of your team members so that you may design environments where human experience is valued over productivity.

By paying attention to the feelings of your employees, and recognizing individual and collective needs, productivity rises organically in a way that is sustainable and not forced.

When employees feel valued, empowered, and comfortable (not fearful of) presenting ideas that could fail, you’ve set up an environment to maximize talent conversion.

Interaction

The last piece of the UX equation is interaction—how the user interacts or engages with your content, within your design. When developers study patterns of interaction, they get feedback that they use to modify or solidify content and design.

Managing others and leading teams involves recognizing how each individual works, and providing the necessary feedback so the employee can develop the necessary skills to perform at a higher level. Especially with the growing millennial workforce, feedback—and the frequency of providing feedback—is increasingly important.

In looking at how people learn, studies show that one of the key factors in performance and knowledge retention is the interaction between the student and the instructor. The same parallel is true for the workplace.

Employees who have better relationships—better interactions—with their managers have higher rates of productivity, workplace satisfaction, and an increased desire to perform well.

Analyzing UX should not just be viewed as a consideration when it comes to analyzing consumer behavior. Retaining top talent IS based on “user” experience.

Make sure your leaders are creating experiences that will keep these key players on your team.

Due Diligence: The Most Obvious Sales Tip in the World

I won’t make you wait for it: Know your audience.

It’s simple.

Know your audience. This is the first step for any communicative episode. And selling requires effective communication.

A little bit of due diligence research can go a long way. And communicating in a way that demonstrates your knowledge can yield opportunities that a single-track sales mind (meaning push product, push product, push product) tends to miss.

Here’s an example.

Last week I received an email from a textbook representative from one of the top five academic publishers in the United States asking me if he could stop by my office and bring me desk copies of this publisher’s business communication imprint for use in my classes.

I’m a faculty member in business communication at the largest university in the country. I’m used to getting solicitation emails from publishers asking me to review books in the field or asking me to consult on digital products. So hearing from a publishing representative isn’t new.

But here’s the kicker.

I’m one of three authors on the textbook that is used at this university, and others throughout the country: Business and Professional Communication in the Global Workplace. I don’t say this to toot my proverbial horn (especially since each book that sells earns me barely enough money to buy a Starbucks coffee), but to illustrate a gross neglect of due diligence.

After shaking my head, I responded to the man, sent a direct link to the public syllabus listed on the department website, and told him that replacing my own book and rewriting the course content was not likely to happen.

Does this mean he shouldn’t have contacted me at all? No!

Does this mean that sales people shouldn’t contact people who already have a solution in place? No!

It does mean that if you do your due diligence, you can use a different approach, build a relationship, and made inroads for future opportunities and referrals.

Had he written, expressing knowledge of the book utilized and asked if we had plans to create another edition (this one was released in 2010), he would’ve gained valuable information. He would’ve learned that, no, we aren’t renewing for another edition with our publisher. With that information he could have (a) asked if we would be interested in talking to an editor at the company he represents–demonstrating his value to the editorial team in finding potential authors, or (b) asked if I would mind if he dropped off some books for consideration at a later date, should we decide to switch to a newer version, or to review updated chapters on technology for potential adoption, since that changes so rapidly.

Either of these would’ve furthered the relationship, and who knows what might have happened in the long run.

Know your audience. It’s simple. But often overlooked.

Acknowledging Feedback: What are Your Moving Bus Stops?

This year a particularly amusing phenomenon is occurring in China—the case of the moving bus stop. The latest victim to this menace, Xiaozuo, China—a village of 3,000—made the headlines in today’s Wall Street Journal in an article by Te-Ping Chen, In China, the Bus Stops Sometimes Take a Walk.

Villagers, not happy with the current bus stops, have begun digging up the signage and digging new holes (complete with pouring cement) in order to favor their location. Be it an aging community who feels the current stop is too far to walk or an advantageous business owner trying to shift customers in his favor, “walking” bus stops are causing havoc in transportation routes.

Transportation authorities are directing operators to continue to use the old locations, and have replaced signage in many instances. This works for village residents, who know where the original stops are. But for those who visit the area, you’re likely to end up flagging down a passing bus to no avail, because you’re at the wrong stop.

This is clearly a communication breakdown.

An obvious, and quick, solution would be to put stickers over the “moved” bus stops to communicate that buses will not stop there, and point patrons to the original location.

This is just a bandage on the wound.

Unfortunately this happens in businesses all the time.

Underneath the phenomenon of the walking bus signs is a systemic problem to be addressed—listening to feedback. Is there legitimate reasoning behind these moving bus stops? Should the transit authorities be paying attention? Would simply acknowledging the move help the situation? Or is this just the case of multiple pranksters trying to pull one over?

There’s always some truth behind every joke.

In some areas, the government put out advertisements in publications to encourage people to stop moving the bus stops, expecting the problem to slow—but it hasn’t.

Organizations are guilty of this, and often at the cost of profitability. When something goes wrong, we often seek the nearest bandage to stop the hemorrhaging. But what we fail to do is find out how the bleeding began in the first place. We fail to get feedback. And in the cases when we do receive feedback, we often fail to listen.

Asking for feedback means nothing to your employees or your consumers if you aren’t recognizing, or in some cases implementing, shared thoughts. In the same way having an “open door policy” is a waste of time, and a statement of hypocrisy, if you aren’t going to encourage challenges to the status quo and contrary opinions without repercussion.

I challenge you to recognize the feedback from your employees and customers. And not just with a thank-you. Respond, legitimately, to the feedback. If you don’t agree, let them know that you understand their desire to move the bus stop, but then show them how it is not feasible and explain why. This communication lets people know that they, and their opinions are valued. When you take time to have a conversation, they feel respected. And even if you don’t change the direction of your bus to accommodate their requests, you’ll have riders who better understand the system.

Back to Basics—Building Value, Achieving Buy-In, and Cultivating Community

Recently J.C. Penny Co. named a new CEO to lead it out of its sales decline. Marvin Ellison, formerly of Home Depot Inc. and Target Corp affiliation, will take over the role and plans to build a solid operations base moving into the next fiscal year, diversifying from the company’s previous three-year focus on making the chain more “hip” to instead focusing on the “nuts and bolts of retailing rather than flashy merchandising.”

Companies that chase trends that vastly differ from their roots often find themselves in this regressive, rebuilding situation.

Getting back to basics is something that leaders need to regularly consider. It’s easy to get caught up in the flashy objects, the newest marketing trend, or the latest technology.

When you get back to basics—back to the foundations of what makes your company, department or office unique—you reinforce the mission, support the vision, and build community.

Think of what you have done lately to get back to basics. Can your employees reference your mission statement? Does your team know the company’s vision? Do your customers feel like they are a part of your community?

These business basics aren’t going away.

The principles of building a solid value base, getting buy-in from your employees, and cultivating a community of advocates around your products and services are what sustain businesses over time. While they may manifest in flashy merchandising techniques or the latest snap-pin-book-twit-agrams, it’s not the manifestation that matters—it’s the core message behind the company and the people who support it that have the staying power.

Three-Step Communication Process to Increase Meeting Productivity When There’s an Elephant in the Room

No matter how well you’ve planned a meeting, if there’s a proverbial elephant in the room, meeting productivity suffers if you don’t take time to acknowledge competing concerns.

Acknowledge any competing concerns that may exist before starting a meeting. Do this by using the following three-step process:

  1. Acknowledge the Elephant
  2. Provide a Path
  3. Regroup and Execute

For example, if your company was just acquired by another and everyone is worried about job security, you could say:

Step 1: Acknowledge the Elephant

“I realize that [topic of meeting] isn’t at the forefront of our minds today with the recent acquisition. Just like you, I’m worried about what this will mean for my job and all of our futures.”

Step 2: Provide a Path

“Nonetheless, we have a job to do now, and this issue needs our attention. For now, let’s focus on [topic of meeting] and we’ll designate another time to talk about acquisition concerns.”

(If you need to do this immediately because of a sensitive issue occupying minds and energy, get the time penned in right then and there.)

Step 3: Regroup and Execute

“Now that we have a time and space to talk about the acquisition, let’s get back to the task at hand, [topic of meeting], and have a productive meeting.”

(Then, continue on with the meeting agenda that you diligently set and distributed prior to the meeting.)

Employee Development: Through the Lens of Matisse’s Cut-Outs

Every time I view an art exhibit I go through with dual perspectives—the first an appreciation for the form, function and technique of the artist within a historical context. The second, to see what metaphors and analogies I can draw from the form, function, and technique to my personal and professional lives.

Late in his life, Henri Matisse’s health declined, and he found himself sanctioned to a chair or bed for the majority of his day. Instead of giving up on creativity, he found a new outlet, what he called “drawing with scissors” that enabled him to transcend his physical limitations and resulted in a new art form that is now on a glorious display at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

What’s interesting about this art is the technique of overlay, non-waste, and maneuverability—a fantastic metaphor for employee development.

Overlay—Matisse took considerable time deeming any aspect of a cut-out complete. Since each piece cut was done from free-form, no two were alike. When he wasn’t completely satisfied with the performance from a piece, he would add subtle changes by pinning tiny cuts of paper to make the form just right. He didn’t discard the imperfect piece.

In corporations we often subjugate the imperfect—when all that is needed is a subtle shift or minor addition. We look at the short-term picture instead of the long-term masterpiece. Investing in correcting imperfections with minor additions instead of removing them all together and starting from scratch is a long-term strategy with unlimited potential.

Non-waste—Matisse used both the positive and the negative space with his cut-outs. When a piece of paper fell to the ground after the original form was cut, he evaluated the leftover and found a way to organically work it into his composition—or into future compositions.

With employee development, we often see only the final goal—the final product—without giving appreciation to the steps that were taken to reach that end state. The efforts that your employees exert to deliver the final result need to be recognized. Who knows—the steps that were taken along the way could result in a product of their own.

Maneuverability—Matisse used his walls as a living canvas. He would direct cut-outs to be pinned in one location, only to move them around multiple times after until he found just the right fit. Often, the right move of one piece would lead to the creation of an entire new work, or the placement of a piece into a new landscape.

With employees, finding the right fit is important. To be immovable is detrimental to organizational progress. A good leader will know how to figure out where to best place each employee, realizing that the initial intention—perhaps the initial job someone was hired for—may not be the right fit.

Inject overlay, non-waste, and maneuverability techniques into your employee development approach and see what masterpieces develop.

Three Tips for Cultivating an Innovative Workforce: Attracting and Retaining Talent

Turn-over and the inability to attract innovative employees are two problems that plague many organizations and stunt business growth. Cultivating an environment that rewards entrepreneurial thinking—or intrapreneurship—is one key change a company can make towards keeping and attracting proactive and forward-thinking employees.

Here are three tips to help.

Tip 1: Provide time and space for innovation.

If you want employees to come up with new ideas, you need to give them time to create without penalty and during standard business hours. One of the most well-known examples of this practice is Google, who gives employees 20% of their work week to use creating ideas for Google-related products and services.

Doing this communicates to employees that you value their time and insight—that you welcome their ideas and encourage them to be active participants in the organization. In turn this produces a work environment where employees feel invested in the company and its success.

Tip 2: Generate a process for idea submission.

A lot of companies will provide time for innovation, but then leave employees wondering the proper way to actually communicate their ideas. Providing employees with a process for submitting or pitching their ideas lets them know what information needs to be presented, what research needs to be done, and gives direction for execution. This framework also can reduce time spent evaluating ideas, as only those ideas that are a bit more fleshed out will make it to the presentation stage. (Note: This doesn’t mean that quick, spur of the moment ideas aren’t valuable—in fact, sometimes they are the best ideas. But providing a venue for those, separate from the formal pitch, is essential and perhaps a precursor to the presentation.)

An example of a company who does this well is DreamWorks. At DreamWorks, employees at all levels can get education on how to pitch an idea. successfully—a program that encourages creation from all employees, not matter what their job role or title.

Tip 3: Reward the process, not the result.

One sure-fire way to squash innovation is to penalize employees if ideas don’t work out. Do not view this as wasted time. Instead, view this as time when an employee was actively participating in the betterment of the company. When you give employees permission to fail, they are willing to be more creative—more innovative and risky—with their thinking. This can often lead to the best ideas.

A great example of rewarding the process comes from Calgon who, upon advice from Alan Weiss of Summit Consulting Group, created a “Best Idea That Didn’t Work” award, giving respect to the process, and not the end result.

Innovation and Participation Killers: Three Phrases Leaders Should Never Use

Creating a culture that breeds and nurtures innovation is important in today’s global economy. Employees are increasingly mobile, and Generation Y and Z employees, in particular, aren’t afraid to leave and find new jobs if they don’t feel valued.

If you want to retain good employees, attract talent, and cultivate an environment of participation, creativity and innovation, DO NOT use these three phrases.

Stick to your job. That’s not in your job description.

Want to make an employee feel that they have no use beyond their immediate job description? These phrases kill any organizational buy-in and stop any incentive the employee had to think of ideas outside of their immediate scope. This tells employees that their thoughts have no value to the organization as a whole, and that the only thing that is important is their singular function.

Instead, ask questions.

  • How do you see this idea fitting in with your current charge?
  • How do you see this idea expanding your responsibilities?
  • How do you see this idea benefiting the organization as a whole?

Asking questions gets employees to make the connections on their own, that you might want to make for them. It also can give you enhanced understanding of the employee’s vision and how it can contribute to the greater goal.

We don’t have the resources.

This phrase is commonly used by managers without regard to the consequences. When you tell an employee this, you’re also communicating that his idea isn’t worth exploring or that her contribution isn’t good enough to warrant consideration. Managers that want to increase innovation find a way to provide resources for promising and invested employees, or encourage the employee to find the resources for him or herself. They also know that creativity thrives in the face of constraint.

Instead, issue a challenge.

I don’t have the resources immediately at my disposal to approve this today; however, why don’t we think of a couple of ways we could rearrange our priorities to make your idea a possibility.

or

I like this idea and want to think about how it fits into our overall strategy a bit more. Come up with a few solutions for how we could integrate this idea within our current operational plan and let’s meet tomorrow to discuss.

This lets the employee know that you do value the idea, and that you want to consider how the idea could come to fruition. It also encourages the employee to invest more time in his or her idea, which will increase buy-in to the organization and to your leadership.

That’s not the way we do things here.

Want to make an employee feel like she’s on an island and not a part of the team? Use this phrase. Telling an employee that he doesn’t know the way things are done communicates two negative things: (1) that he doesn’t know the organization well and that he should, and (2) that outside ideas, perspectives and innovations are not welcome.

Although organizations have rules and policies, it doesn’t mean that they should never be re-examined. Maybe this is the time and place to do that introspection.

Instead, encourage integration.

In the past we’ve approached this idea from a XYZ perspective. However, I think this new idea has promise. Let’s see how we can integrate your solution with our existing operations to improve the organization as a whole.

You can also challenge the employee to think of those means of integration and bring them to you for a conversation.

Remember, as a leader your team’s success is your success. Foster an environment where creativity and innovation can thrive and watch your team succeed.

Proactive Communication: Are You Communicating About Your Turbulence Points?

I just landed from a flight that was the most turbulent flight that I’d been on in years. There were audible gasps from the passengers and concerned glances across the aisles.

And no communication from the captain.

On flights, turbulence isn’t uncommon. We know how to weather slight bumps in the air, and we don’t worry about them. But when it gets to the point where your stomach is dropping and passengers are concerned, the captain—the leader—needs to communicate and reassure.

“Ladies and gentlemen we’re going to be experiencing a fair amount of turbulence soon, so I’m going to go ahead and turn on the fasten seat belt sign.”

And when something is really a bit worrisome, “Ladies and gentlemen that was a pretty big gust we just ran into. There’s nothing to worry about. I’m going to drop up to a lower elevation to see if we can get under this system.”

These messages let us know what’s coming, and let us know the actions that will be done to remedy the situation.

Business leaders can learn from pilot communication. If a bump in the road is anticipated, communicate about it. If you’re going to take a corrective path of action to avoid conflict, let your team know.

Not communicating in these situations, like in my flight today, leaves a bunch of people in an awkward and uncertain position glancing around the cabin and drawing conclusions for themselves.

If you want to make sure they are the right conclusions, communicate.

Destroying Credibility: A Surefire Way to Damage Your Reputation

The relationship that an employee has with his or her supervisor correlates with the level of employee output—the better the relationship, the higher the output quality.

Nothing kills a relationship faster than a loss of trust and credibility.

The other day I attended a meeting where a speaker presented content from a model that originated in the late 1890s and was later popularized in the 1960s.

I frequently use—and cite—models and theories to provide a foundation for strategies that improve my client’s situation. For me, the speaker’s use of this model is not an issue. But that she never cited the originator of the model or noted that it wasn’t her own, is an issue.

From that point forward I lost all interest in the presentation, because she did something that any speaker, manager or leader should never do—take credit for (or fail to credit) someone’s idea or product.

Error in Judgment: Not citing the source

If you didn’t generate an idea, create a solution, or manufacture a process, don’t act like you did. Or, even worse, don’t take credit for it.

Taking the credit for someone’s idea, especially when that person is an employee that reports to you, is a surefire way to lose respect. Although someone may be under your direction, give credit where credit is due.

You don’t lose credibility or appear less of an expert for citing someone else.

You severely damage your reputation if you don’t.