Friday, July 23, 2010

Ask them “What is it you do best?”

If I am being really honest with myself, when it comes to my job, there are a lot of things I do well but pouring through reams and reams of spreadsheets to analyze the importance of data is not one of them. I would make a horrible accountant or statistician. I know enough about html coding to know how to do underlining, bolding and italicizing, and that’s about it. I would make a horrible HTML programmer (or any other type of programmer for that matter.)  I am pretty good with people (or so I’ve been told) so roles that involve working with a team, collaborating on problem-solving, and removing roadblocks from other people’s success are things I enjoy. But ask me to develop a five-year business plan and market forecast and I will have one of those deer in the headlights moments.

The point I am driving at is this. It’s amazing to me how often organizations put employees into new roles without doing a check-in about what they really do best – and what they enjoy doing. It can be as simple as asking them “Tell me, what is it you do best?” When was the last time you asked one of your employees that question? You may be surprised by some of the responses you might get next time.

I found out the hard way early in my career that I had routinely been giving one of my employees a daily project that involved what I thought was simple math calculations. She had to get this daily report to me (for my boss) every day by 9am and the project involved adding up several columns and rows and computing some averages. One day, I came to her desk and asked her when she might have the report ready. What happened next is something I will never forget. For no apparent reason that I could fathom, she suddenly exploded in pent up rage. She stood up, glared at me and shouted “I will NOT do this report for you anymore. I hate numbers. I don’t know how to do this project. I never have. I dread it every morning when you ask me about it. Find someone else to do it for you!!” After I picked my jaw up off the floor from the shock of her response, I realized that I had never taken the time to ask her what she was good at and what she felt were not strengths of hers. Apparently anything with numbers overwhelmed her and made her feel incompetent. I thought it was a very simple routine project. But for her, it was being asked to do something she dreaded and feared. I never bothered to ask how she felt about this task, so I had no idea of the ticking time bomb of resentment and anger that was building up week after week in this employee – all because I had asked her to do something she felt incompetent to do.

I worked for another company – a dotcom startup (remember those days?) in which it was not uncommon for there to be a major companywide re-org every 45 – 60 days. People were moved around like chess pieces into new roles in new departments with new managers. Not surprisingly, for most people, it was very unsettling and anxiety-provoking – and in too many cases, I saw people being thrust into roles for which they were not prepared and for which the role was not a fit for what they did best. I remember one senior manager telling me bluntly after a recent re-org, “If they don’t like their new job, they can quit.” How enlightened, I must say.

But in one of these re-orgs, my new manager did something totally out of character for the company. He pulled his new team together – most of whom he knew only casually. And he met with each one of us and asked us “Tell me, what is it you do best? And what is it you would like to be doing if it were up to you?” Of course corporations are not democracies. Employees can’t run the show and tell their managers what they will and won’t do. But asking our employees what they do best and what sorts of tasks give them energy (as opposed to draining their energy) is a powerful to build loyalty and play to their strengths. The result is not only a much happier employee, but higher productivity and better results. An NFL football coach would not put a 375 pound offensive left tackle in to play wide receiver. It’s not his strength. But all too often we move people into roles or give them new responsibilities without checking in to make sure this is actually something the employee will be able to embrace and succeed in.

So the next time you think of moving someone into a new role, or are simply thinking of adding a new project onto their plate, slow down and ask them what they do best and consider whether this responsibility plays to their strengths. If not, perhaps skills training is the solution. But just possibly, finding a more effective use of their talents is a better solution.

Posted by Tim Jones at 10:13 am

Labels: doing your best