This month we share our thoughts of the brave new world looming into view and take a first look at the MacLeod report.

 

The Great Leader this month is William Wilberforce.

 

 

 

 

 

"William Wilberforce…was a great man who impacted the Western world as few others have done.  Blessed with brains, charm, influence and initiative, much wealth … he put evangelism on Britain's map as a power for social change, first by overthrowing the slave trade almost single-handed and then by generating a stream of societies for doing good and reducing evil in public life… To forget such men is foolish."

                                                                                                                                J.I Packer  

 

You can read our article by following  this link to our website.

 

 

 

There is no doubt that the last twelve months have been difficult for businesses and organisations that are not government supported.

 

Uncertainty, the inability to forecast demand and the increased risk of trading (due to insolvencies and disappearing trade credit insurance); all have made for an interesting year.

 

Like many organisations we have deferred recruitment, reviewed our costs and sought to rebalance our P&L.

 

Our Customer benefit is primarily performance improvement, getting more done for less cost. This was not a message that people wanted to hear a year ago as they struggled to keep the people they had busy in the face of erratic (or falling) demand.

 

Today, as the signs of an upturn in Q4 2009 make themselves felt, organisations are looking at re-building capacity. I do hope we don’t go back to the old over-staffing policy extant before the Credit Crunch.

 

Certainly those organisations that have to pay their way are interested in doing more with less and enquiries have increased substantially I am pleased to say.

 

That brings us nicely to that horrible thing that our politicians are trying to avoid saying too loudly.

 

We all know that there have to be cuts in government spending and an increase in income (taxes) to clear off the £1,000,000,000,000 deficit.

 

Here we have the problem. Honest politicians talk of spending cuts and go on to say of course this means cuts in services. Does it? If we paid everyone in the NHS twice as much would we get twice as much healthcare?

 

No of course we wouldn’t. In fact there is a very weak correlation between pay and performance. Even well designed performance-related pay schemes are corrupted by their users – bankers’ bonuses and MPs’ expenses for example.

 

So why can the government do more with less? Why do spending cuts mean cuts in services?

 

 

It comes down to attitude as revealed in behaviour.

 

 

We attempted to interest a government funded social enterprise in doing more with less, reducing cost or reducing headcount.

 

The response was “why would we want to do that?”

 

 

The organisation’s status, and that of its officers, depends on how big it is not what it achieves.

 

When you design your organisation you have to watch out for what you are building in the core.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Can I suggest “inspiring achievement” is a good core value?

 

 

 

Motivation Matters has just started its sixth year and it is pleasing to see the message is getting across!

 

Our website has always explained the need to find a “Third Way” for Europe. We Europeans have a different social model from America and the Far Eastern countries. We need a way to be as productive as, what is now being called, the G2 (US and China) to take our rightful place in the world’s decision making.

 

Europe’s social contract model appears in varying guises but is increasingly being harmonised.

 

The European model is much more supportive of individual people and families than the G2 countries. I see no reason why this model should not be as effective in producing world class performance: GDP, Culture and influence.

 

We have well educated people, a huge range of culture and a deep pool of history. All we need to do is to make them perform very well, be astonishingly productive. We need to inspire their achievement.

 

Europe is steeped in history and tradition. Perhaps this is why new ideas are not given the airing they deserve.

 

We should all seek new ideas. When a salesman calls I am always happy to talk. A few minutes time is a cheap price to pay for a new idea. You may not have a few minutes to spare in a day? I wonder why.

 

So I am pleased that The Rt Hon Lord Mandelson and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills have discovered a similar viewpoint.

 

They commissioned a report titled “Engaging for success” from David MacLeod and Nita Clarke (the MacLeod Report).

 

The 157 pages include some juicy statistics which gel nicely with our own in the main. Although I doubt we would ever use “The impact of the engagement deficit” as a chapter heading ourselves.

 

The key points in the report are:

 

- performance and profitability have been transformed by employee engagement

- step change in workplace performance and in employee well-being, for the considerable benefit of UK plc
   a key to unlocking productivity

- Nor is employee engagement only relevant in retail, where customers expect a cheerful face on the till, rather               than a languid hand waving them to a far-off aisle in response to a query about the availability of marmalade, and where employees’ attitudes demonstrably and immediately impact on customer satisfaction. As Sir Alan Jones, Chairman Emeritus of Toyota UK told us: “Wherever you work, your job as a manager is to make your people be the best they can be – and usually they don’t know just how good they could be. It’s individuals that make the difference”.

- If it is how the workforce performs that determines to a large extent whether companies or organisations succeed, then     whether or not the workforce is positively encouraged to perform at its best should be a prime consideration for every leader and manager, and be placed at the heart of business strategy.

- employee engagement is the difference that makes the difference

- Tim Besley, leading economist and member of the Monetary Policy Committee put it, “there is an increasing understanding that people are the source of productive gain, which can give you competitive advantage.”

- David Yeandle of the EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation: “It will be hard to get through the recession without engaging your workforce.”

Note these quotes are taken out of context. You should satisfy yourself as to their meaning.

 

 

 

Who should read this report? It is about a strategic change programme to improve operational effectiveness and therefore organisational performance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

- Clearly, as it is an organisational performance issue the Chief Executive should read the report.
- The Finance Director will be interested in how to move such a large percentage of the total labour costs onto the bottom line    or into increased delivery.
- Improving operational effectiveness is clearly in the Operation Directors remit. You should read it before the FD and the CEO ask you.
- Of course the HR people should know about it so they have an answer to “why haven’t you done this yet?” Is this HR’s opportunity for a strategic role?

This should be #1 on your Christmas reading list!

 

Or you could always call the experts – 01787 378851

 

The report ““Engaging for success: enhancing performance through employee engagement” A report to Government by David MacLeod and Nita Clarke” is © Crown Copyright and is available from this link

 

 

Helping inspire your people.
 

 

 

Thought provoking?

 

We hope you have enjoyed this month's Perform. Our aim is always to inform, inspire and enhance performance.
 
When you are ready to question the motivation management practices in your organisation, our website offers a wealth of information, tools and techniques to get you started.
 
Remember, we want to help.