When Talent Leaves

I've been leading a workgroup to create a succession plan for my organization for several months.  This weekk as I prepared for a presentation to discuss the final report, I took a few minutes to reflect on this question, “What happens to organizations when talent leaves?”  This is the main issue that our group was attempting to address.  If your organization doesn’t have a succession plan…you’re in BIG trouble, when talent leaves!

When talent leaves, and you’re not prepared what happens???  What do you do when that high potential employee tells you that she’s taking a job somewhere else? 

• You are desperately looking for a replacement that may not have the right knowledge and skills to backfill the vacant position.
• Your organization’s effectiveness suffers and eventually its reputation and credibility. Work doesn’t get done.

Here’s an example of what happens when an organization doesn’t have an effective succession plan…

Why not take the time to ensure that our organization is prepared for employee departures.   In addition to creating a detailed succession plan using various models such as the one prescribed by the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) or displayed in the video above, keep these four things in mind to make sure that you’re prepared when talent leaves.  Who knows, you may even prevent their departure. 

1)     Know what’s going on in your organization.  Have conversations with employees to check the pulse of the organizational climate.  Are people satisfied with their jobs?  Are they just “getting by" until a better job comes?  How engaged are your employees?  What are employees talking about around the water cooler?

2)    Strategically plan for today as well as tomorrow.  You should also determine who, within your organization is ready now, in the near future, and in a few years to fill the next level positions.  Don’t wait until someone is getting ready to leave to think about how you're going to fill their shoes.

3)      Incorporate back-ups into your organizational structure.  Each of your critical positions should have at least two people who can perform the duties and know what’s going on with the day-to-day functions.  At a minimum, you should have a primary person and a back-up.

4)      Value all of your employees.  You should invest in all of your employees’ development.  Let them know that they each have something to contribute to the organization’s success by your actions.  Remember, organizations aren’t made up of only high potential employees.  When you don’t value all of your employees, those high potential employees, who leave huge talent voids upon their departure, are the first ones to leave.

It’s our responsibility as L&D professionals to ensure that our organizations have employees with the right knowledge and skills for maximum effectiveness and efficiency.  Explore what your role is within your organization’s succession planning process.  Why not take a leadership role in your organization’s succession planning initiative…create a collaborative team to avoid being caught off-guard when talent leaves.

Order Taker to Business Partner

This week I received a lot of positive feedback regarding the mentoring program that I manage.  Employess were inspired to step outside of their comfort zones and actually network with others as a result of the speed mentoring event that I conducted this week.  Others were engaged and motivated to join the program and become Mentors and Mentees as a result of the briefing that I conducted about the basics.  Some feedback was just to tell me that they are really benefiting and growing as a result of the mentoring activities.  One person even asked me, "I hope your organization values you because of the good work that you're doing with the mentoring program."  My response to him was that I am just happy that the work that I'm doing is helping him and others grow.

For some reason, I started thinking about my journey in the L&D field.  How did I move from being an order taker to a true business partner and performance consultant?  It was PASSION!!!  I thought about the different roles I've served including: training coordinator...program manager...instructional designer...performance consultant...business partner.  As I saw the power that learning could have on transforming people and organizations, I wanted to learn more about the L&D field.

My focus has always been to make a contribution to the mission of my organization and help others learn.  In my first role in this field, I was an order taker.  I was responsible for ensuring that employees received the training that they requested. In other words, I filled orders.  Now, I'm happy to say that I am playing a valuable role in transforming my organization by creating growth opportunities through mentoring.  No longer am I an order taker, but a true business partner.

Check out my article in the T+D Magazine in this month's edition, in the Development Department (free for ASTD Members) to learn how to use your passion to be a true business partner... 

The Company You Keep

I was asked to be the guest speaker at the Metro DC ASTD Chapter, Free Agent Special Interest Group (SIG) event on Friday, June 17th.  The Free Agent SIG is a group of independent consultants who gather to discuss topics related to self-employed learning and development professionals. The topic for the event was "Growing Yourself, Not Just the Business".  During the event, I had the pleasure of experiencing very stimulating and engaging conversation with my peers and colleagues.  On my ride home from the event, I began to reflect on the people with whom I just met.  Then, I began to dig a little deeper into my "inner circle."  A particular quote from Les Brown came to mind..."If you're the smartest person in your group, then you need a new group."

The topic of the April 20, 2010 Inspiration, Motivation, Information - Personal Development Blog, discusses Les Brown's quote.  I took the advice of the blog and started evaluating my inner circle or group that I associate with these days.  I specifically asked myself the following questions that are mentioned in the blog:

Why am I with this group?

Am I the smartest person in my group?

Do I like where this group has me headed?

Am I okay with what my group has me becoming?

After careful evaluation of my inner circle, I decided that this group is exactly the people that I need to be associating myself with.  Here are my answers to the questions...

Why am I with this group?
They help me grow!  My inner circle encourages and supports me when I face challenges and helps me move along my learning journey. 

Am I the smartest person in my group?
Absolutely not!  I make it a point not to be around people from whom I can't learn.  My inner circle is comprised of people from diverse backgrounds, educational levels, ages, and are smart.

Do I like where this group has me headed?
Yes, I do!  My inner circle is going somewhere.  They are always looking for ways to improve systems, communication, processes, etc.  They are continuous learners like me.

Am I okay with what my group has me becoming?
Yes, I am!  My group wants what's best for me.  They are happy when I'm fulfilling my purpose and passion.  They want me to be successful.

We must be careful of the company that we keep.  We also need to ensure that the people with whom we're associated are going to help us achieve our personal and professional goals.  They need to be going somewhere and not holding us back from achieving our best.  It's important to evaluate our groups from time-to-time. 

When the company that we keep is the right group, they will help you on your learning journey by sharing their experiences with you as they move along their journey.

Recharging Your Battery

Over the weekend, I took time to recharge my battery.  I spent time with family and read books, unrelated to learning and development, and relaxed.  As usual, I started reflecting on a time in my life when I wasn't able to relax, and when I was spending time with family...I was still working!

Burning Out

I have learned that it's not healthy to have an out-of-whack work-life balance which can lead to burnout.  Freudenberger, a psychologist and author of Burnout: The High Cost of High Achievement, stated that burnout occurs when good people are trying their best.  I would like to slightly alter Freudenberger's definition to say "when good people are trying to be perfect."  This is exactly what most of us are trying to do, if we admit it...exceed our best.  We don't want others to see us make a mistake because of what they might think.  Guess what...we gain the most value from our experiences when we make mistakes and learn from them. 

Burnout doesn't happen overnight, but it's a slow burning ember that suddenly turns into an out-of-control wildfire!  Before you know it, it's too late.  You can't concentrate, you're easily agitated, you can't sleep, and eventually the mistakes you were trying to avoid start occurring more frequently.

Cost of Burnout
We workplace learning and performance professionals are often guilty of making too many sacrifices to achieve the unachievable...perfection!  We should avoid burnout at all costs because it is a serious state of emotional exhaustion and loss of motivation which can lead to serious problems like depression, addiction, and physical illnesses, according to Joan Borysenko, author of Fried.  Burnout effects your creativity as well as your productivity.  As learning and development professionals, we cannot afford to lose the two things that allows us to meet our customers needs.

Recharging Your Battery
Take time to enjoy life...spend equal amounts of time on what really matters!  For me, what matters is my family, friends, and allowing myself to have downtime to read for pleasure, as well as my professional life.  Just like with a car, when you don't have a charged battery, you will not perform.  You will undoubtedly achieve higher levels of performance when you take time to recharge your battery.  What do you do to recharge your battery? 

Mentoring Hits the Mark

I conducted a Speed Mentoring: Pairing Up session last week, and it occurred to me how important mentoring is to an organization’s growth and employee engagement, especially during a budget crisis.  (Speed Mentoring: Pairing Up is the way that I provide an opportunity for Mentees to meet with at least three prospective Mentors in pursuit of finding a suitable match.)  I had several participants mention to me that they are really getting a lot from the mentoring program that I develop and manage.  They expressed that they are not able to go to training because of the budget, so the mentoring events that I provide allow them the opportunity to still enhance their knowledge, develop their skills, and learn from others through networking.   

Mentoring is the perfect way to provide…

·       No cost targeted learning events.  It’s one of the most cost effective ways to motivate and inspire people and help them grow.

·        A pool of internal talent sources.  You don’t have to hire a contractor because people share their own knowledge, skills, and experience.

·       Opportunities for share knowledge across an organization.  People can learn about other areas of an organization.

·        Assistance to new employees as they acclimate to the organization.  You could have more experienced employees mentor new employees to help them learn how to navigate the organization and building.

·         Networking opportunities.  Create ways for people to meet people whom they wouldn’t ordinarily talk to or interact with.

If your company is experiencing a budget shortfall, consider establishing a mentoring program.  If you already have a mentoring program, re-evaluate it to look for ways for meeting employee learning and development needs through expansion.  When designed properly, based on organizational needs, there is no doubt that Mentoring Hits the Mark.

Creating Learning Cultures

I attended the Metro DC ASTD Chapter dinner program on Thursday night...Rethinking organizational Culture and Implications for Performance. The program was presented by Joe Wilmore, Wilmore Consulting Group. Joe presented very useful information that, once again, caused me to reflect on a related topic that really interests me, learning culture.

I started thinking about my organization and my contribution to its learning culture. In other words, do I do the following:

• educate myself about the value of learning,
• take advantage of L&D activities
• share knowledge and skills obtained with co-workers
• view mistakes as opportunities to improve and learn to create a “safe” learning environment

The answer is “YES”! I can say that I contribute to creating a learning culture with my organization.

Could you say that you are positively contributing to creating a learning culture in your organization? If not, what can you do differently to start contributing? If so, what are you doing to contribute?

Take Charge of Your Own Development (Part 2)

In my last post, I discussed how I decided to take charge of my own development. I explained how I began to energize my career. Once you start taking control of your own development you must continue by staying current in your field.
We are most happy when we feel like we have some control over things that impact our lives like our careers. Other benefits according to Mind Tools include: being better equipped to make informed decisions, building expert power, and keeping you alert to future trends.
Our development is totally up to us! No one can stop you from reading a book or attending a free webinar.

I now look for ways to stay current in the L&D field. Here's a few ways that I keep up-to-date...

Sign up for free newsletters and white papers...Mind Tools Newsletter, The Learning Cafe, Strategic Partners

Communities of practice...Toolbox for HR, OPM Federal Training and Development Wiki

Sign up for free webinars

Join National ASTD

Join Metro DC ASTD

Join LinkedIn groups...ASTD National, Chief Learning Officer, Young Government Leaders, CPLP

I have 3 mentoring partners which were mentioned in my April 13th post.

Industry reports...Bersin & Associates, ASTD Research

Networking...Metro DC Dinner Programs and networking events, attending special interest groups (SIGS) events

Volunteer at the ASTD Leadership Conference, and as Metro DC Director of SIGS opportunities

Subscribed to free publications...Chief Learning Officer, Talent Management Magazine

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