Building Your Bench Strength – The 4 Key Steps

As the economy begins to rebound and more opportunities become available, many companies will be faced with the harsh reality of losing their brightest stars. Worn down from increased workloads and fewer perks and growth opportunities, high potential employees will be quick to answer the call to greener pastures.

Companies succeed in large part because of strong leadership. And yet, according to a recent ASTD (American Society for Training and Development) study, less than half of the companies surveyed had plans in place to ensure ongoing leadership strength. Of those who did have succession plans in place, only 14% characterized their succession plans as effective.

Effective succession planning involves four key steps:

1. Identify the critical talent needed – key skills and competencies
2. Create individual development plans for high potential employees, based on the key skills and competencies needed, and connect those plans to corporate goals
3. Communicate the succession plan to targeted individuals so they know they have a stake in the future of the company and vice versa
4. Validate and improve the program through employee feedback and measurable results

As companies focus less on how to survive and more on how to thrive, succession planning becomes a key strategic lever. Knowledge and wisdom from leaders need to be transferred to those on the bench. High potential employees need to be retained and developed to guide the organization to the next level. And a plan for continually supplying the leadership pipeline needs to become a part of the culture.

Succession planning is not a nice to have. It is a must have.

Till next time,

Karen

Get Real About Your Career – Start by Taking Inventory

The start of the New Year is typically when we “resolve” to make changes: eat less, exercise more, learn something new, change careers…

If a career change is on your list this year – whether it’s moving to a new career, finding new work in your current field, or creating more work/life balance – an important first step is figuring out where you are today. This is what I call Taking Inventory.   Clarifying who you are and what you want will help you define, communicate and achieve your career goals.  Here are 8 key areas for your self-assessment.

1. Skills.  What are the skills and competencies that have helped you succeed in your career so far? Which of them are transferable skills that will help you contribute regardless of industry or position? Write them all down.
2. Values. What are the things you MUST have in a company, a position, a leader to be happy and do your best? What motivates you?
3. Natural talents. What are those innate abilities that keep coming up in compliments and performance reviews? “You’re a natural at…” Fill in the blank.
4. Interests. What do you like to do? Think large on this one. You never know when an interest you haven’t really focused on so far may lead to a new opportunity…
5. Job Satisfiers. Or, as I like to call them, “the good, the bad, and the ugly.” What are the factors that have made your past work situations rewarding (the good), boring or frustrating (the bad) or something you never want to repeat (the ugly)?
6. Barriers. Here’s where you really need to “get real.” What are those internal blocks that have kept you from being all you want to be? Write ‘em down.  Recognizing them is the first step in eliminating them.
7. Key accomplishments. Think back over your career and other areas of your life. What have you done that made a difference for your team, your department, your company, your community?
8. Salary requirements. In today’s job market, this is often one of the first questions asked, so it’s good to start thinking about this early.  Consider what your basic expectations are and then, when you’ve determined your target market, do some research to validate your expectations.

Completing these inventories will take some time.  However, you will be amazed at how much you’ll learn about yourself, and how the resulting personal career snapshot will guide you to “what’s next.”

Want to know more about how to “Get Real” about your career? Check out our online guide here.

Whatever you do, don’t stop believin’.  ‘Til next time, Karen.

Dollars on My Mind

Let’s continue our walk through The Get Real Guide to Your Career.  We’ve been very busy in the last seven blogs taking inventory of who we are today.  We’ve looked at skills we want to use, our values, the natural talents that make us who we are, and of course, we’ve even looked at the themes that are the foundation for our accomplishments and  have established our career path.

No Running Away!

Now…it’s time to look at the one area people normally run away from screaming – the dreaded financial conversation.  I can already hear you all saying “I’ll wait till Karen’s next blog.  I’m cool with money; I don’t need to look any closer.”  And…I can even hear “has she gone completely nuts?  Why do we have to discuss money?  I was having so much fun rediscovering who I am.”  Yep…I’ve heard it all…and…I doubt there will be much that will surprise me.  So, here’s a thought…just keep reading for a minute and see whether you can power through without shutting down.

The Financial Conversation with yourself…

I know that the financial conversation can bring up emotions we don’t want to deal with.  The financial conversation can remind us of our upbringing, it can remind of us what we haven’t achieved and it can remind us of how incredibly lucky we are to be where we are today.  My vote, let’s go with the last one and be very grateful for where we are today.  Remember…success is defined by each of us individually, and we have to judge our success on ‘our terms.’  Our financial situation don’t define our success, and it is only one component of our life.  As we look back at all we have learned so far, maybe we can take the “charge” out of the money conversation and realize our life is made up of multiple successes and experiences, and that darn money part is just a piece of the entire picture.

You’ve got to SEE it to internalize it!

So…let’s go for it.  You might as well get out your paper and pencil because you know what’s coming.  Ya gotta write it down.  Ya gotta see it to internalize it and make some shifts.

As we begin thinking about what’s next, and the financial rewards we want with our new career role, we also have to think about our financial requirements today – what we will need to sustain our lifestyle while we look for that next opportunity.  The first part should be fairly easy for us to define.  What are your current fixed expenses?  Those bills that you know have to be paid each month:  mortgage/rent; auto and health insurance; car payment; child care.  Well, you get it.  We all have our fixed expenses, so really think that through and get it down on paper and total the amount.  See that wasn’t so painful, was it?

Now let’s think about our variable expenses:  groceries; gasoline; credit cards; eating out; entertainment; clothing; shoes (a girl’s gotta have a new pair of shoes – maybe that should be in the fixed category!)  Again, you get the idea.  Write down the approximate amount you spend in each category and get your total.

How about those savings?  What amount of accessible funds do you have available (just in case you need them):  savings; stocks/bonds; IRAs; change in the piggy bank; money stuffed in the mattress.  Get it down on paper.  I am in no way suggesting you use your accessible funds; however, it is always good to understand the amount of money you have, where it is and how to get it if necessary.

Remember, this is all so we can truly understand how much money we need/want to make in our next position.  Some people will be thrilled with their current financial situation and will not want to take big risks for big rewards.  Other people might want to take some bigger risks so there is a bigger payment in the end.  All of this is an individual decision and needs to be based on what is best for you.

Time to do some discovery work on what you are looking for from a total compensation perspective.  It is important that you understand your salary/income requirements prior to your search.  This will be based on your target market – including geographic location, industry or type of organization, position/function (all coming in future blogs).  Look at your requirements in the following five categories.  List what you:  a) would like, and b) what you are willing to take in each category.  Be realistic.  Or…maybe you can dream a little bit and have two lists.  Why not?  One that is realistic, and one that is completely out there in dreamland.  You are going to write that book you know is in you, get on Oprah and become a zillionaire!!

1. Base salary
2. Commission
3. Bonus
4. Benefits
5. Other (stock, signing bonus, extra vacation time, etc.)

See, that wasn’t so bad, was it?  The salary conversation is often the hardest one to have and you need to really think it through.  That is why it is so important to be clear about your requirements and be able to clearly articulate them.  The more prepared you are, the easier it will be for you to answer the question “what are your salary requirements?”  You don’t want to hesitate…you want to be sure of yourself…and say exactly what you want.  Remember…if you don’t take care of yourself, no one else will.

Hope this helped, and you don’t have knots in your stomach.  In fact, I hope this exercise took the knots away.  You are now clear about fixed and variable expenses.  You are clear about your compensation requirements, and you are very, very proud of where you are today.

Your success is defined by you and for you!

Remember…your success is defined by you and for you.  Don’t let anyone else place their values on you and tell you what success looks like for you and your life!

Here’s to the greenbacks coming your way!!!

Till the next time…Karen

Triumphs

It’s time to brag a little bit.  What are the chances you can do that? Of course, we all know people who brag a tad too much (so annoying)…and then there are those who don’t brag at all (even if they should)…As my Dad used to say to us growing up, “No one likes a show off.”  Needless to say, that has wreaked havoc in my life over the years.  Yes, another story completely!  I will spare you the details!

We’re now at the point in our adventure through The Get Real Guide where we begin thinking about the (Triumphs) we have had in our work life.  No matter what age we are, no matter what we do for a living, we have all had accomplishments that we need to be proud of, and be able to articulate clearly and concisely. When we are successful, it is often because we are applying our skills, natural talents and experience to achieve significant results.  Analyzing your key accomplishments will help you understand the skills and natural talents that helped you achieve them.

Remember when I wrote about our Natural Talents and how important it is to understand what they are, and how important they are to our success?  As we get ready to do our Triumphs exercise, we want to be certain we are acknowledging what those Natural Talents are.  Let me explain.

Yeppers…it is time for some work.  I know, I just can’t help myself, can I? I guess it’s the coach and/or nag (you decide your term) in me.  As we walk through The Get Real Guide, we need to do some work along the way.  Here goes:

Think back through your work life and your many accomplishments.  List 5 of your most significant accomplishments.  Now here is the important part – list the 5 significant accomplishments that you really loved achieving. We have all had accomplishments that –for many reasons-we do not want to repeat.  Today let’s focus on those accomplishments you just nailed and loved doing.  Think about them.  Take a walk down memory lane.  Smile a bit…remember who you were working with, the project, the environment, what were the deliverables?  Why was it a Triumph?

Now, get your list and next to each accomplishment, write the skill/natural talent/trait required to achieve that item.  Be very clear and concise.  Take a look – what are the recurring patterns or themes?  What are the skills and natural talents that are helping you be successful?  Once you determine those…bingo…you’ve got the language you will need as you begin thinking about a job promotion or a new job.  When you can articulate those skills and natural talents, the person you are talking to will be able to see and hear in your delivery the excitement, the energy, the confidence you have. People want to surround themselves with positive people. When you are talking about your Triumphs it is hard not to be positive.

Isn’t it fun just thinking about the good work you have done in the past? Go ahead…brag a little bit…just don’t tell my Dad!

Till the next time… Don’t Stop Believing!!!