On The Ground

Once upon a time we use to want to get that company laptop and mobile phone so we felt more important. With the rapidly increasing development of smart digital technology, we are now faced with how do we better manager digital technology at the workplace – in fact everywhere? There is no doubt digital technology has assisted businesses grow and develop. Examples may include; Borderless communication Reduction in expenses – video calls rather than airfares for example Increa

Humans have a natural tendency to focus on the negatives and overlook the positives of our people, according to Professor Martin Seligman. Our brains and what we see are like Velcro for negatives and Teflon for positives. As leaders we can always see what is wrong but fail to see or appreciate what is right. Add to that the fact that people remember the bad far longer and more intensely than the rights and we have a double recipe for disaster and poor performance. Performan

10 letters and 4 simple words but together they have a huge potential to build your team, staff retention and company results. The core role of a leader is to take the time out to speak with their people and ask them how they are doing. RdL recently partnered with the new CEO of a large medical facility. Together we took an approach of asking how people are and what do they need to provide better services to their patients and staff rather than coming in with our own views

With the ongoing turbulence of the commercial and political environment around us, the challenge of retaining key talent is more important than ever. If you want to keep your best employees around in the future, you must demonstrate to them that they have a future with your company. In order to prepare for a dynamic and sustainable future, organisations and workers alike must focus and partner with each other to not only address and fix what is not working but also look int

Being an outstanding leader is about being an amazing coach. Instead of wanting to maintain control and not empowering your people to do their job, a solid leader will coach and develop their people to enable them to achieve success, which ultimately leads to your success as a leader. Instead of jumping in and always giving the solution because you do not have time to coach and develop, hold back and ask the right questions so the coachee develops their mindset and thinking

I was recently asked by a client for my views of an incentive scheme. Incentives can either drive success or drive a silo mentality, so having the right scheme is critical to business success. There are 5 core principles of a successful incentive scheme: Firstly, the incentive should only be payable if the overall company achieves its results. This drives a team focus to ensure the company is a success, that then cascades down to a department, team, and individual level. Th

Look at the big picture More accurately put, create the vision for all your people of the big picture Start at the top It all begins with the vision and mindset of the CEO. If they live the right values and culture it will cascade to all levels. 2 way communication Ensure your people feel safe in sharing thoughts and ideas with each other and senior managers Show them what right looks like Ensure your leaders are showing their people what right looks and feels like. It is eas

Staff retention, or better said, the retention of the staff you want to keep, continues to be a challenge in 2019. The ongoing challenge of finding the right person that can assist you in growing your business whilst ensuring they are a great culture fit will forever be a challenge in business. That said, we do not need to see this as the elephant in the room. We often overlook the value and simplicity of having regular communication with our people and asking them what we

We often overlook one of the biggest tools in building an engaging culture, our front-line managers. In order to continue success in leadership and business, we must continue our focus on seeking innovative and rewarding ways of empowering our leaders at all levels to drive, coach and support their teams to greatness. This needed shift in perspective is one reason why performance reviews are moving away from annual or bi annual affairs and toward consistent, forward-looking

Being successful in business is not about 1 off launches that show a spike in revenue one month followed by a drop the next. In order to be successful, companies must focus their attention on recurring revenue rather than promotional revenue. Everything changes when you have consistent income every month that you can count on. This decreases stress, enables more innovation and opportunity, improves workplace culture, increases the company’s customer focus and brings more cl

Where there may be a large number of people searching for jobs, the reality is the calibre of candidates is decreasing and roles and expectations are becoming more advanced. So what is the solution? Easy - upskill and invest in your existing workforce. Something that has been a focus of successful organisations for many years. According to HRMAsia, “HR and business leaders need to proactively manage the demographic change of their workforce by – systematically and intentio

For many years we have tried to force policies, procedures and change into our people and it often ends up being stressful and unproductive for all involved. A new and fresh approach to change and innovation is through Gamification. Gamification is making change and activity fun for all those involved. An interesting way to encourage engagement and participation in initiatives is to turn it into a game. Gamification can bring light-hearted competition and rewards to all sor

For many years we have focused our energy on the traditional classroom only learning experience, and yes, for many years this did work. But times and people have changed and the old ways may not always work. Younger generations of learners are wanting a blended form of learning that incorporates classroom, coaching, on-job and also team or experiential learning activities to create the full learning experience for them. For the past 14 years, RdL has continued to modify the

If we want our business to be a success, we must put the people first. Yes, we have all heard this for many years but how many actually believe in and action what they hear? Some of the most successful organisations focus on their people in 2 key areas. Firstly, do we have a good performance management system that supports innovation and growth? Managing people’s performance is not a once or twice a year task that must be done. We need to treat performance management as pa

We have heard for many years the benefits of investing in your people but have we cut ourselves short. Research into this area along with experience that RdL has had over 13 years has confirmed that investing in people development needs to go beyond skills development at the workplace. Leaders and companies need to understand that taking a vested interest in helping employees thrive in all areas of their lives (not just work), will create more engagement, productivity and o

Below are some great tips to build your Brand Ambassadors. Focus on your early adopters – those who are already spruiking on social media about the company and thank them. Make it a 2-way win – Ensure the employee sees the personal benefits of the professional advocacy role they play. Get it right – Provide the team with tips, guidelines and ideas for sharing so it is in line with company standards. Make it easy – Ensure the team have a readily available supply of great compa

The tradition has always been to conduct training, coaching and support programs in-house as it was more cost effective. However, the question has always been – “Do you get the same added benefit and significant impact from in-house providers as you can from external providers?” This is not to say that many companies are not great at in-house training and coaching, and there is great value in working in the same environment as your coach or mentor. However, it's often diffic

In order to be successful in the current economic minefield and with the political arena in many countries uncertain, companies need to show greater levels of flexibility to ensure they meet the needs of their people and customers. The regular work we once use to rely on has significantly changed and projects and one-off launches have become a greater part of our annual business plans. This less predictable work routine calls for different and better ways of managing the wor

We often overlook the most readily available brand ambassadors we have. Our team will always have the traditional role of doing the doing whilst hopefully showing leadership in all that they do, but we need to focus on how they can support ‘The Brand’ through being living ambassadors for the Company. Successful organisations are moving towards building a culture where each employee feels empowered and loyal enough to promote the brand and its benefits to their friends eithe

We have all experienced it, we walk into an outlet seeking to make a purchase, sometimes even have the goods in hand, only to look around to find no one wants to help you complete your purchase. Has customer service been driven out of the retail or distributor fundamentals? The continual drive to reduce labour costs, combined with a company drive for results and a differing mindset of the younger generation is leading to a customer service break down with 2 losers, one bein