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You Should Come to This Course. Yes, You.

October 7, 2014Blog, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Leading-Process-Change

Our regular readers will know by now that Nicole and I are upbeat, positive people and we get excited about a lot of things. So, when I tell you that we are SUPER EXCITED about our upcoming course in November, please trust that it is not hyperbole.

Why are we so over-the-top and ridiculously excited?

Well, because we believe this course is innovative, and innovation is a good, positive, wonderful thing.

You’ve heard us talk about The Whiteboard Way© before (click here or here). We believe that our method of Process Improvement is what organizations need in order to take the first step into a Process Improvement culture. Often organizations hear about the buzz words – continuous improvement, process improvement, Six Sigma, Lean Six Sigma, TQM, etc – and they go bananas implementing a new program.

And so many of them fail. I’ve seen it happen in three major organizations in both the private and the public sectors.

They fail because they haven’t set themselves up to succeed – they have not considered the importance of change management, culture shift, and stakeholder engagement. It’s as bad as if someone all of a sudden decided they want to be a farmer, and so they bought a big field and started sticking seeds in the ground, without tilling the soil, removing rocks, adding fertilizer, and ensuring the earth is rich and ready to receive the seeds.

Enough of the analogy. You get what I’m saying, and hopefully many of you are nodding your heads and saying, “yup – been there, done that.”

Our new course, Leading Process Change, offered Nov 5 & 6 in Toronto, examines the intersection of Process Improvement and Leadership Principles and enables the learner to influence change and develop a process-based culture. Everyone can benefit from this course, especially if they are responsible for, or thinking about, process improvement in their organization. (Click to Tweet)

You need to come to this course. Yes, you.

What? You don’t think you’re at the right level in your organization to attend? To that I say, pfftrespectfully, PFFT.

Whether you are an employee on a team in an organization who wishes you knew how to influence change so people would listen to your ideas, or a VP trying to figure out why you can’t make process improvements stick, (or somewhere in between), this course is for you.

We have designed the course in two modules, so that people can come to one or both.

  • Module 1 – is all about The Whiteboard Way©, and focuses on the basics of Process Improvement without getting all fancy shmancy and needing expensive software or textbooks.
  • Module 2 – examines essential skills in making sure that change sticks. We have expert speakers on how to communicate & promote your change initiative, how to work process improvement into your strategic planning, and how to be aware of your own emotional intelligence and its impacts on others.

More information is here in this link. I encourage you to read it, and then sign up and bring anyone else who needs to be there (which is everyone, so…). We have discounts for Earlybirds (before October 18th), former students, members of BNI or Verity, and employees of the OPS. And discounts can be combined!

I hope to see you at our course. I promise it will be fun – our past students have rated our training consistently in the top box! (Oh, and the lunch will be fantastic!)

Ruth.

PS – if you have any questions, just shoot us an email at info@whiteboardconsulting.ca/staging.

3 Steps to Better Networking

October 3, 2014Blog, , , , , , , , , , ,

We do quite a bit of networking for business here at Whiteboard.  It can be alot of fun, and it can be draining and frustrating.  Networking is a great way to build your business. An even more profound way to look at it is to imagine the people you meet as your sales team!  Instead of trying to sell YOUR product or service to everyone that you meet, what about learning about ways that the both of you can act as referral partners for one another?

BadNetworking-199x300It is painful to see how poorly networking can go if not done properly. Someone is selling you something you aren’t interested in, AGAIN! How do you find the RIGHT people to network with, and most importantly how do you break the ice with that person? (Any APP developers out there? I have a genius networking app I’ve been dreaming about…..)

Ruth and I consider Whiteboard to be that sweet spot between process improvement and leadership.  The same self-discovery coaching principle we teach to leaders and managers applies to networking. Good ice breakers help build the right connection, without you “selling” to them before you’ve built a relationship.  Networking is like coaching.  Get your network partner to self-realize that you are someone they should do business with.

3 Steps to Becoming a Power Networker

1. Tell me about…/Tell me more…

So often we get so excited about our business that we just go wild. Use these first two phrases to learn and discover more about the person you are talking to.  One of our WORST networking experiences is 3 days after we’d just gotten a new website, we met with a website developer who started an hour-long networking session telling us about how we should re-do our website.  Let’s just say Ruth had her director face on. She was not happy.  Or last week, when the divorce attorney asked us both within 30 seconds if either of us were married. Yuck.

Tell me about/ Tell me more about:your business, your clients, how you got started, your business partner, your employees, your personal life.

What ever YOUR angle is, get people to start talking! Pick a specific “nugget” and get them to tell you more. Actively listen for more nuggets so you can ask more questions.

2. That sounds a lot like XYZ….

images (6)Use this information to tell a SHORT brief story about how something in step 1, happened to you. Don’t go on-and-on.  And despite your brain DYING to tell this person how your business, idea, product will be perfect for them, take some time to go to step 3.

I’ve had a similar experience. Can I share a similar story with you?

You are building a RELATIONSHIP.  Not a buyer and seller interaction – but a real relationship with this person!

3. LEVERAGE & Ask more OPEN ended questions.

What are open ended questions?  Any question that does not yield a yes or no answer.

  • How is XYZ working for you?
  • What kind of feedback do you get on XYZ?

Take your nuggets and get them to ask you more.

This is also a great time to set the stage for a followup conversation (especially when you are at a networking event and want to speak to more people):

  • I would love to know more about you/your XYZ, When do you have some time next week to chat?
  • You’ve really got me thinking about you/your XYZ, and I’d like to pick your brain about it some more. When are you available?

Wait, Nicole got blogitis again, and  she forgot to tell me about the part where I get to pitch my business.

No, I didn’t.  You don’t get to pitch your business.  GASP. In fact, I’d like you to wait until they ask you the open ended questions about you and your business. Remember that people learn coaching techniques and networking techniques by observing others.  Be their role model.

And even when I am talking about our business, I’m still asking more questions that they may be a little more self interested in, like:  Tell me about process improvements that you have worked on? Tell me about how it worked? Tell me about the types of training that your company offers/delivers/has done in the past? How did it go?

And because we are like that, I made you a quick little Networking Planning Checklist so you can prepare for your next event. Good luck!

Networking horror stories? Did these tips help?  Let us know @whiteboardcons #Networking.

Stay tuned as we feature the speakers in our Leading Process Change Course for the next few weeks.  Learn more about the special expertise they bring to the table!

Until Next Time,

Nicole

Getting to the Root of It

September 25, 2014Blog, , , , , , , , , , , ,

root causeNicole and I have stumbled into a bit of a theme these days, talking about the basic activities involved in Process Improvement and sharing with you some user-friendly and simple templates. First, we wrote about how to actually map a process, and next we covered how to look at that process map and assess which steps are a waste of effort – i.e., they add no value. Both those blog posts include handy templates which you can edit and manipulate to suit your needs.

So now what?

In Nicole’s example, we learned that External Failures were taking 56% of the total time involved in completing a process. Since External Failures are clearly non-value-add steps, that is where we will focus. It may seem obvious, but often it’s over-looked so I’ll say it again: start your process improvement work on the steps that offer the most efficiency opportunities.

The next step then, is to look closely at the External Failures and think about what might be some root causes for them. By reducing or eliminating them, not only will we reduce the chance of upsetting a customer, but we will reduce the amount of time it takes to complete the overall time to do the process.

Root What Now?

Root cause. The main thing that is causing a process to fail. Here’s an example: a customer’s dessert arrives and it is burnt. What might the root cause be for that? There may be a few of them, so let’s brainstorm. The customer received the burnt cake because:

  • the server wasn’t paying attention
  • the oven was too hot
  • the recipe was wrong
  • the chef wasn’t watching the oven
  • the oven timer was broken

There are a few examples of why the cake might be burnt. Are they root causes? Nope. They are sub-causes. Let’s dig deeper:

  • the server wasn’t paying attention because:
    • he/she was rushing
  • the oven was too hot because:
    • the thermostat was broken
  • the recipe was wrong because:
    • the chef made it from memory
  • the chef wasn’t watching the oven because:
    • he/she was receiving an order of fresh vegetables during dinner service
  • the oven timer was broken because:
    • it hasn’t had any maintenance in 5 years

So are those root causes? Maybe. Let’s take a look:

  • the server wasn’t paying attention because:
    • he/she was rushing because:
      • three servers called in sick and there was no backup plan
  • the oven was too hot because:
    • the thermostat was broken
  • the recipe was wrong because:
    • the chef made it from memory because:
      • he/she learned it from someone else who didn’t write it down
  • the chef wasn’t watching the oven because:
    • he/she was receiving an order of fresh vegetables during dinner service because
      • the delivery truck was late
  • the oven timer was broken because:
    • it hasn’t had any maintenance in 5 years

Brainstorming with Fish

We’re getting closer. We have a few root causes in there now, and a couple of others might even be able to go further. A great way to do brainstorming like this is to think in terms of categories of what could possibly go wrong. You can use whatever categories will work for you or your business, but some common ones include:

  1. Equipment
  2. Process
  3. People
  4. Materials
  5. Environment
  6. Management

fishbone
A tool we love to use originated in Japan in the ’60s. Known by several names (Ishikawa diagram, Cause-and-Effect diagram, and Herringbone diagram, to name a few), we use the most common title – the Fishbone Diagram. This diagram is nothing more than a brainstorming tool that helps groups think about potential root causes of a problem or issue. Lucky for you, click on this Fishbone Template for you to use in your next brainstorming session. It will download automatically.

Here are the steps in using it:

  1. At the “head” of the fish, write the problem you want to address.
  2. At the end of each of the “bones” of the fish, write the categories you’d like to use. (Whichever ones will stimulate the best discussion.)
  3. You can start brainstorming sessions several ways. One we like to use is to give everyone a stack of sticky notes and a pen. Ask them to look at the categories and write down as many potential causes as they can – one per sticky note. Now have everyone put their sticky notes on the wall, clustered in the six categories. Discuss and add more (because people always think of more). Remove duplicates.
  4. Draw a line towards each “bone” and write the potential cause on it.
  5. Ask if there are any further “bones” that might go off of the one you just wrote. If there are, then draw a line connected to that line.
  6. Keep going until you’ve written down all the ideas, and then ask if there are any more.
  7. Done!

Now you have a big list of ideas, and the trick is to figure out which one of those is the most impactful. How do you know which one(s) to fix first? Well, Nicole will tell you that next week… so stay tuned!

Until next week,

Ruth

PS – details on our new course, Leading Process Change, are coming within the next few days. Stay tuned to our Twitter (@whiteboardcons) and Facebook feeds, not to mention our website.

How To Solve The Biggest Problems With Process Mapping

September 19, 2014Blog, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Post-Process Mapping

A few weeks back Ruth blogged about how to do a basic process map (click here to check it out) and it included a free process template for you to use as well. You’re welcome.  Process mapping is a huge part of our business. We know process mapping creates engagement and buy-in for process change  (when done in a workshop setting) , is a great visual tool, and can improve effectiveness and efficiency.

whiteboardconsulting.ca/staging: Peacocks and ProcessesRuth talked about the key steps in documenting a process; the steps include:

  1. Determine the swimlanes
  2. Determine the trigger point
  3. Consider the end point
  4. Put a circle shape in the swimlane for the person/group that starts things off. Write the word “START” in it.
  5. Put a square shape next to the circle and label it #1, and write the step.
  6. Proceed with each consecutive step.
  7. Add the arrows last (you almost always have to change them as you go).
  8. When you reach the end point, put a circle with the word “END” in it.

AND, I can’t believe Ruth forgot this.  I am going to gloat since she is a stickler for this one.

9. NUMBER your steps (post-production comment from Ruth – I am mortified! I can NOT BELIEVE I forgot that… and is such a public way! I will never live it down. Sigh.)

We received a lot of really good feedback on this blog, and people loved the template.  The big question was:

What do I do next, after the Process Map?what-next

Great question.  The next 2 steps are to validate your process map and look at value added steps.

Validation

So if you’ve done your process map in a workshop style setting, you likely had many of the stakeholders (the swimlanes) of the process in the room.  So validation in this case is finalizing that process map and sending it back out to those participants to see if what you’ve documented is accurate.

If you’ve worked on a process map by yourself,  validation becomes even more important. You are verifying that all the steps are accurate and represented properly. In fact, this is an opportune time to re-group and re-engage to validate the map, or engage for the first time.  A few things to keep in mind:

  • Talk to the people in the process and follow the product or service through the service to make sure steps and swimlanes have been captured accurately.
  • Make sure to capture easily seen or invisible steps (i.e. where the product or service is waiting, or being moved to another area)
  • Ensure that you haven’t mapped the best case scenario, or worst case scenario.  The map should be representative of how the process normally works.

Now for the meaty stuff….

Next we are going to analyze the process! First let’s determine whether a step adds value or not? Ask these 3 questions:

  1. Does the customer consider this step important?
  2. Has the product or service had a physical change?
  3. Was it done right the first time?

Here you can identify the type of non-value added activities. Non-value added activities include:value-added-non-value-added

  • Moves: Steps in the process where the product or service is in transit from one place to another. How many times and to how many people in your organization does this touch?
  • Delays: Steps in the process where the product of service is waiting for the next step in the process (a great example of this is approvals or sign-offs). This is your classic bottleneck.  
  • Set-up: Steps in the process that prepare the product or services for a future step
  • Internal Failures: Steps that have to be re-done (i.e. iterations of something before it reaches final approval) that are detected internally
  • External Failures: Steps that have to be re-done that are detected by the customer (i.e. damaged product at shipping….)
  • Control/inspection: Steps where the product or services is reviewed to ensure customer satisfaction (i.e. Quality Control)
  • Value Enabling: Steps that don’t add value but are necessary for the functioning of the organization

How do you do this? Well by filling out the super easy Process Summary Analysis Template of course!

Process Summary Analysis Template Instructions

Step 1: Put in the number of process Steps

Step 2: Enter the amount of time it takes to complete this step in minutes (don’t know exactly? Time it a few times or guesstimate for now), sum that row in minutes, and its % is 100% because we are summing the whole process.

Step 3: Identify which process steps are value added and not value added. Sum the number of minutes for all the boxes that you’ve identified (in this case we have an x in step 1 and step 6 at 1 minute and 5 minutes respectively, so we have 6 minutes of value added work and 75 minutes of non-value added work).

Step 4: For those steps that are not-value added, identify what the type of non-value added activity it is.

Step 5: Assess the percentages, and start working on the biggest first.  In this case 56% of the non-value added steps are due to External Failures.

Screen Shot 2014-09-19 at 9.48.28 AM

That should keep you all busy for a little while!

Ruthie…I guess this means you have to give our readers some Cause-Effect Diagram templates next week. You’re welcome. 🙂

Also stay tuned for more info about our new “Leading Process Change” Course!  Over the next few weeks you’ll see guest blogs from our speakers, more info on the course, and more templates I think!

What do you think of this template? Did you use it? Was it helpful?  Let us know at info@whiteboardconsulting.ca/staging or Tweet us at @whiteboardcons! More questions for us?  Use #DearRuthandNicole!

Until Next Time,

Nicole

 

Two Things I Learned This Week From Students

September 12, 2014Blog, , , , , , , , ,

teacherThis week I taught a two-day course on behalf of the Centre for Leadership and Learning in the Ontario Public Service (OPS). It’s called “Management Essentials,” and is for non-managers who want to either learn more about how management is expected to perform within the values and objectives of the OPS, or to understand what it takes to become a manager – thus being able to assess their own skills gaps and build them up accordingly.

This is a great course, and I enjoy teaching it so much not only because the materials are current and relevant, but because the people who attend generally WANT to be there (vs. being “told” to take a course in presentation skills, or “how to write a briefing note”). Teachers reading this will agree that when people attend because they want to, they are generally much more engaged and the class has more energy.

This was true this week – a great class filled with 35 interesting people from many different areas of the OPS, with differing levels of experience and terrific stories to bring life to the material.

As I drove home I reflected on a couple of standout things that I learned from the class, and thought I’d share them with you in this week’s blog:

One: We need to remind people, over and over again, that THEY are responsible for their careers and their professional development.

Situational Leadership Model

One of the conversations we had (a couple of times) relates to the last blog post I wrote (Does Your Manager Like People). We had just finished discussion on the Situational Leadership model of applying directive vs. supportive leadership techniques. This tool is a BIG hit with people – while complex at first, it is extremely helpful for new managers when they need to accept and learn that their natural, or comfortable, style of learning may not be appropriate in all situations. It helps them assess, adapt, and communicate in a more effective way.

A student approached me at the break and said, “this is AMAZING. I think my manager missed this subject when she was promoted and attended manager training.”

“Ah, bless your heart,” I thought.

I made sure to share with the class that in most organizations, there is no training to become a manager. (As an aside, I may enjoy a little too much dropping those bombs and watching the reactions.) The conversation that followed was an important one, as people realized that it is up to them to learn how to be a good leader.

A great manager should be encouraging their teams to learn and grow, develop career goals and job shadow, take courses, or broaden their perspectives. In the absence of a great manager, many people flounder and future talent may be lost.

Two: There are employees out there who want to innovate, change, and improve, and we need to find and harness that energy more effectively.

After the “manager training is up to you” conversation, there was a slight shift in energy, with more questions aimed at the application of the course material in a practical way to help people apply for and win new jobs.

One question came from a young man who likes his job very much, has been with the OPS for about five or six years with no complaints, and who is starting to feel frustrated. “I’m naturally inquisitive and process-oriented. I see people do the same things over and over with the same results, but no one takes the time to stop and fix the process so that things improve. Where are all the process jobs???”

Not an easy question to answer. Of course there are process jobs out there, and within the Ontario Government there are specific areas that are more process-focused than others. The trick is in finding those job descriptions and being able to read between the lines and know that certain phrases indicate a culture of process improvement more than others.

The real key is meeting the right people. This student was taking control and doing the right things – taking courses, asking questions, discussing his goals and dream job criteria with people, and being open to new opportunities. By doing so, he was exposing himself to more people who might be able to point him in the right direction.

I’d love to see the process-focused culture shift happen more quickly – not only in the OPS but in other private-sector organizations as well. Imagine if more job descriptions included a requirement for some type of Innovation Thinking, or the ability to demonstrate a process-improvement focus as part of regular job functions.

I may be biased, but I think that a process focus culture is the next big thing required in business today. If we could find these naturally process-oriented people and maximize their energy, we could shift our thinking from “process improvement or day job” to “day job through process improvement.” (Click to Tweet)

I teach again in a couple of weeks… can’t wait to see what my students teach me then!!

Until next time,

Ruth.

3 Leadership skills I learned from Joan Rivers

September 5, 2014Blog, , , , , ,

Love her or hate her, Joan Rivers represents more than cringe-worthy celebrity fashion bashing and plastic surgery.  She was part of my childhood growing up. I would nervously glance over at my Macedonian Nana, watching Joan’s latest antics, her mouth and eyes wide with shock, waiting for her to become wildly upset. Suddenly she would burst into infectious laughter and I’d be relieved we wouldn’t have the change the channel.

In recent years, Joan fed my insatiable hunger for celebrity gossip, either providing it herself, or providing me great scathing material to copy so I could provide hilarious fashion commentary for my friends when out for drinks.

joan 2

Despite an image that often resonated more with plastic surgery or her latest offensive comment, she somehow managed to forge a role in women’s leadership. Let’s look beyond her shameless obsession with looks and see that she did in fact serve as a role model and inspiration for women, overcoming blatant sexism to rise up as one of America’s first female standup comics.

3 Leadership Skills I learned from Joan Rivers…

1. Say it like it is.

Joan sure did not have the “nice filter” that we in business have seemed to grasp on to.    A good leader has the ability to not only provide the right recognition and rewards when necessary, but can also provide great critical feedback.  DISCLAIMER: I am NOT suggesting that we use sarcasm, teasing, and ridicule to provide feedback to our teams.  In fact, it was that razor sharp tongue that created a 3 decade long dispute with the Tonight Show – we don’t want that at work. No thank you. What we can do is channel a bit of that blunt, “say it like it is” attitude to just SAY what we need to say. Even if it is hard, or we don’t want to hurt someone’s feelings.

2. Be humble.

Joan’s humour was often self deprecating.  The greatest leader’s and bosses have the ability to recognize their strengths and weaknesses, and rather than fear their weaknesses and hide them, be okay with who their are.  Let’s be honest here. I’ve been using self deprecating humour since birth. But as a leader, sometimes I had this fear that if I showed my team that I wasn’t perfect they wouldn’t respect me. Not necessarily true. Demonstrate a humble attitude that tells the team: “I can’t do it all I need your help.” It is this kind of attitude that brings a group of individuals to works together with you as their boss to become and interdependent team -one that achieves more than every individual could do on their own.

3. Be Funny.

Work is serious. Your job is serious.  Issues at work are serious.  But, it’s okay to laugh.  It’s okay to make things light and fun, and to be serious when appropriate.  Again, I cannot profess that Joan taught me how to be funny (I was already incredibly hilareous). But her passing reminds us to share some laughs with our teams in her memory.

To conclude. I am hilarious, but also very humble, and when I channel my inner Joan, I can also tell people what I need to tell them without fear of hurting their feelings.

I’ve learned from my dealings with Johnny Carson that no matter what kind of friendship you think you have with people you’re working with, when the chips are down, it’s all about business. – Joan Rivers

Tell us about your inner Joan @whiteboardcons, #JoanRivers.

Until Next Time,

Nicole

 

Does Your Manager Like People?

August 29, 2014Blog

Screen Shot 2014-08-28 at 8.00.40 PM Blog ideas come from the most interesting places.

Yesterday I enjoyed a chat with a young woman (I’ll call her Susan) seeking my advice on becoming a consultant. I was humbled by her request, as I’ve only been a “real” consultant for just over two years (never mind the in-house consulting I did for 7+ years before that), and certainly don’t have all the answers. However, I agreed to meet with her to find out what she’s thinking and see how my experience can be  of help.

But that conversation is not what I’m writing about this week. Instead it’s about a comment Susan made while we were talking about some of the courses that I teach. About a year ago she attended a course on Management Essentials that I taught on behalf of the Ontario Public Service’s Centre for Leadership and Learning. Susan enjoyed the course so much that she began to question whether she really wanted to be a manager after all. She thought she did, of course. Most people do when they take the course.
Among other things, they are inspired by the thought of the title, the increased power, flexibility of schedule, and bigger salary. The course is designed to show not only the amazing benefits and privileges of becoming a manager, but also the harsh realities, including the facts that managers

  • often make less than the more tenured employees who report to them
  • seldom “own” their schedules and spend an overwhelming time in meetings, and
  • are the meat in a sandwich between employees who want information and help, and senior leadership who want things to get done – yesterday.

It takes the right kind of person to become a manager, and Susan took a good hard look at herself to decide if that’s something she wanted to do. “I know a lot of managers who should have taken your course before they became managers,” Susan said to me. I replied that I’m sure she does, and what often happens is that people are “promoted into failure” because of their technical skill set, with little or no training before being pronounced “Manager.” Susan appeared mildly surprised by this, and then said something like, “I think managers should be asked if they like people.”

I loved that remark, and told her so. I’ve been thinking about it ever since, and I’ve come to the conclusion that if managers were required to be people who really and truly like people, it would solve so many engagement issues. (Click to Tweet)

Liking is Not the Same As Tolerating

There are good managers and not-so-good managers and great managers. Think about some of the great managers you have worked with – what made them great? Most likely you were able to develop a relationship built on trust that enabled you to learn and grow and feel valued. The ability to trust a leader is based on three things:

  1. The leader’s ability to get things done (do they actually accomplish things at work?)
  2. The integrity displayed by the leader (do they walk their talk?)
  3. Genuine concern.genuine1

This last one is a biggy, and the key word is “genuine.” A leader who tolerates people and knows they’re important may offer cursory remarks on work done well (or poorly) or on events in an employee’s life and think that’s good enough. These leaders are much more transparent than they think they are, and the cursory remarks generate in employees feelings of awkwardness at best or disrespect at worst.

Someone who truly likes people is going to be genuine, no matter what. It’s in their DNA, and it automatically wins that big requirement of the ability to show genuine concern. Without it, there is no trust. Without trust, there is no engagement. Without engagement, it is really really hard to build a great team, and without that, well… you’re in trouble.

So what about you? Do you like people? Are you a manager? Do you want to be? Tell us your story in the comments below.

Until next time,

Ruth.

How an Extrovert Became Introverted

August 22, 2014Blog, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How an Extrovert Became Introverted

I’m having an identity crisis. After years of being the world’s biggest extrovert (to quote one of my friends, who I do not believe was attesting to my outstanding theatrical ability , “…the most dramatic person I’ve ever met.”), I think I’ve become an introvert. Here’s the kicker.  I’m strangely not upset about it, given my historic distaste for those weird quiet folk. I might be actually sighing in relief and embracing my new me.

Our training curriculum on leadership, communication, relationship building, change management, and coaching focuses a great deal on both self-awareness and diagnosis of the personality and communications styles of our teams, peers, and colleagues.  To better how to understand others we must better understand ourselves (click to tweet). With this recent revelation on my newfound introversion, I am suddenly in a place to re-discover and understand my new self. After years of being horrified at the reserved, quiet, and thoughtful personas of my introvert friends because I couldn’t understand them, I suddenly have to be one. And maybe rather than my standard self-loathing/self-deprecating comedy routine, I can instead learn to leverage those introverted characteristics that I once loathed.

Extroverts have long been touted as great leaders, and in fact many introverts have adopted extrovert traits to better fit in to the traditional mold of extrovert-leaders. A plethora of management material focuses on how extroverts can better deal with introverts or how introverts can be more like extroverts.  But maybe just like me, the times are changing and we can embrace and leverage our quiet and thoughtful allies more strategically. introvert-vs-extrovert

Let’s Review: Introverts Vs. Extroverts

Extroverts

  • Outgoing
  • talkative
  • energetic
  • assertive
  • likes to lead
  • prefers group activities
  • derives energy from other people

Introverts

  • reserved
  • derives energy from solitary behaviour
  • enjoys activities alone or one-on-one (rather than in groups)
  • analytical/detail oriented
  • observe before participating/speaking
  • thoughtful
  • make up a smaller amount of the population
  • enjoy working independently

Managing the “others”

Exploit the Extroverts

  1. Let them lead.  As a former extrovert, please let us take the lead on something.  Please let us interact with ALL the people. Even if you cannot trust us to be the boss of everything, give us SOMETHING to manage.  Give us the OK to assert ourselves, burst with energetic excitement, and try not to drive everyone else nuts.
  2. Leverage their social credits.  Extroverts love to network – so let them.  Let them handle luncheons, breakfast networking meetings, boat cruises and so on and so forth. Then, go back to #1.

Invigorate the Introverts

  1. Let them think.  Let the early talkers talk. Let the opinions be heard.  And then invite the thoughtful response of the introvert be heard, when they are ready. Don’t assume just because they haven’t said anything yet, that there isn’t something brilliant lingering in there.
  2. Let them recharge.  Let them have time to re-coup and re-energize – alone.  Then, they are ready to go back to #1 and think some more.

Back to Me.

So what happened to me?  To be fair, there is still a great deal of extrovert lurking there within me.  Introversion and extroversion aren’t categorical, they are on a continuum.  Maybe I’m just visiting the introvert side for a bit?  Some theories suggest that introversion tends to express itself more as we age (like wrinkles and grey hair weren’t enough to worry about).  Others suggest that our needs at a certain time in our lives dictate our expression of these personality traits.  This makes sense, after 10 years of doing alot of independent desk work, I’m suddenly facilitating, teaching, selling, and networking 24/7 .  Previously I derived my energy from social activities. And now I derive energy from a day-ful of teaching, but need a Netflix marathon or four hours of obsessive reading of a certain Scottish Historical Fiction Saga in order to recharge.

After years of interrupting you to tell you about my story, I’m much happier listening to yours and silently judging you (JUST KIDDING!). Maybe I’m old. Maybe I’m tired. Maybe I’m “on” at work and need to be “off” the rest of the time.  Whatever the cause, I’m embracing the new me.  And embracing all those creepy quiet introverts I interuppted for the last 34 years. Sorry guys. I get you now. Want to share your introvert/extrovert transformation?  Talk to us on Twitter @whiteboardcons using the hashtag #introvertsarethenewextroverts #exploittheextroverts or #invigoratetheintroverts.

Until next time,

Nicole

(Process) Rules Are Made to Be Broken

August 15, 2014Blog, , , , , , , , ,

rules

It’s true. Rules are made to be broken. Even in the world of Process Improvement.

“Wait, what?” you ask. “But Ruth, process improvement is all about rules and statistics and doing things the same way every time, yada yada yada. You’re contradicting the very foundation of what Whiteboard teaches!”

Ah, nothing is so black and white, grasshopper. Hear me out.

Process Improvement is Changing

In my process career I have witnessed and/or been part of many process improvement initiatives – big, small, fully funded and supported, done “off the corner of a desk”, successful, and unsuccessful.

The two things that made the difference between success and failure – in addition to the usuals of effective communication, engagement, and senior management commitment – were:

  1. Early evidence that the new methods work and are worth the effort, and
  2. The ability to be flexible and change your mind.

And this last one, flexibility, seems to be growing in importance. In fact, it also influences the first one – “evidence of success.”flexible

Traditional and, dare I say it, soon to become “old school” methodologies like Six Sigma and to some extent Lean, are based on strict methodologies that work really well in some organizations – usually those in a manufacturing or highly repetitive/operational industry. In other industries, particularly serviced-based, these methods have a more difficult time taking root. It’s not impossible, and there are many very successful examples – but it is harder.

It’s OK to Change Your Mind – Just Don’t Squirrel

When Nicole and I teach The Whiteboard Way©  to aspiring process-improvement practitioners, we are careful to point out the need to be flexible, and to change things along the way if they aren’t working. The ability to do this is refreshing to people who are often nervous about adopting a new method, or taking on “this process stuff.”

I recently did some strategic planning with a client – he was a little nervous about planning tactics for goals that were 12-24 months out. “Things can change, Ruth,” he said. And he was right. That’s why it’s important to have a plan and a process, and then if (when) things change you can make intentional decisions to veer away from or modify the plan. But – the modification is then intentional, not just because you saw a fun-looking squirrel and decided to run after it like the dog in the movie Up (love this clip: click here). Some people do this so frequently, that Nicole and I actually use “squirrelling” as a verb.

In the Four Disciplines of Execution, Sean Covey stresses the importance of using and tracking lead measures – those which you can influence and which drive the progress towards a goal – in the execution of a goal or strategy. His theory is that a “cadence of accountability” ensures that people develop the habit of reviewing their commitments and assessing whether those tactics (or lead measures) are making the progress they expected. If they’re not, then they change the tactics and the things they measure until it has the desired result. (Click to Tweet)

In the The Whiteboard Way© we teach the same principles. We combine traditional process improvement tools with modern theories about being flexible yet accountable, and we show how this approach generates increased engagement and better results.

Have you had success doing process improvement this way? Tell us about it!

Until next time,

Ruth.

The 3 habits of “Process People”

August 8, 2014Blog, , , , , , , , ,

Ruth and I can see them instantly in a room full of people. A little like an oasis in the middle of a desert. The way they talk about problems. The way they describe a process. The way they doodle in their meeting notebook trying to talk about their pain point at work.  I’m pretty certain there is even a special twinkle in their eye. It is thrilling and exciting.  Total #MCM (Man Crush Monday) or #WCW (Woman Crush Wednesday) when I meet someone with process aptitude.

Want to be our #MCM or #WCW?

Learn and use the 3 habits of “Process People”

#MCM for process

#MCM for process people

1. Be a doodler:

Process people get the concept of visually representing a process. People process visual information much faster, and processes can be complex and difficult to explain with words. Getting to the root of an issue by quickly doodling that part of the process is a great way to start articulating the problem. It doesn’t have to be perfect and you don’t even have to use the right shapes, just get your view of the process out on paper while you are chatting with someone. Process people’s meeting notebooks are filled with diagrams and scribbles – all a way to distill information to someone else who might not be as close to the process as they are.

2. Talk Data:

Process people understand the importance of data to baseline the performance of an existing process so that you can compare it o the new process. Make sure that you understand the impacts and details of the current process problem, and can you set targets for your future state.  What are you trying to improve, reduce, or eliminate? Improve turnaround time? Reduce change requests? Eliminate errors? Where do you want to get to?  By when?

3. Know the Players:

Process people understand that people have a huge impact on a process.  Understand all the touch points, people, positions, roles, or departments touch a process.  Then you can use our free process mapping template to take your doodles and take them one step further by using the swimlanes.

Just bringing these habits into your every day life can make you someone with “process aptitude” and that’s a great thing!

Tell us about your process #MCM’s and #WCW’s on Twitter @whiteboardcons.

Until next time,

Nicole

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