Project Social: Popularity

One of the early goals of project social was to see how different themes drove more visits and comments. My project social partner Dave Ryan and I are occasionally (OK, frequently) baffled by which posts get lots of traffic, which receive the most comments and which are comparatively ignored.

Which makes it interesting to take stock at the beginning of a new year to see which posts were the most popular overall and compare these to the ones we thought were the best.  It turns out that personal preference is rarely a reliable indicator of popularity.

To demonstrate this point, Dave, Lyn and I are taking this opportunity to review our blog stats and find out which posts were the most viewed, the most commented and also list our personal favorite posts.

Lessons learned:

• People like trends, lists and carnivals. 
• Sometimes you strike a chord. 
• Sometimes you don't.
• That's all I've got.

Without further adieu, here are the top Working Girl posts of all time and be sure to check out what Dave and Lyn have to say over at HR Official and HR Bacon Hut.  It's like a little carnival! 

Top 5 Most Viewed: 
#1: Project Social: The Dark Side of HR - A hard-hitting look at the dark underbelly of HR, mahahahaha!!!
#2: The Top Talent Management Trends of 2011 - Find out if any of my predictions actually came true...
#3: Business Is About Community - A heart warming story of community in action at the workplace
#4: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective 5-Year-Olds - Now a best selling business book (just kidding)
#5: Top 10 Tips for Managers - This post is pretty much what it sounds like

Top 5 Highest Commented:
#1 January 5 Carnival of HR: Reflections, Resolutions, Predictions and Rants - A great new year line up of HR goodness from your favorite HR bloggers!
#2 Project Social: Let's Clique - Inaugural project social post
#3 The Top Talent Management Trends of 2011 
#4 The 7 Habits of Highly Effective 5-Year-Olds
#5 On Leadership and Stinky Fish - Sorry, you just have to read it if you want to know what leaders and stinky fish have in common 

My Personal Favorites:
#1 Let's Not Overdo This Qualifications Things - Companies should focus more on problem solving skills than formal qualifications because after 6 months it's a wash what you did before.  (This advice obviously doesn't apply to brain surgeons.)
#2 Teamwork or Talent? - Why it's a crock to say that teams are more important than high performing individuals
#3 Well, You Can Always Pull a Tinkerbell - Before becoming a catty Peter Pan groupie Tinkerbell nearly destroyed Fairyland and then saved it with her amazing leadership skills and resourcefulness
#4 The 7 Habits of Highly Effective 5-Year-Olds
#5 I Want to Work for Diddy - An early post that explains everything you need to know about effective talent management

Men Are From Mars, Women Are from Venus

I think this video just about covers it...

The Holiday Post...

...in which, instead of writing a new post, I link to several other posts and sites.

(What, you've never done that?)

But first, I'd like to wish all my friends a wonderful holiday...

Of course, many of you I know only as a small thumbnail but that shouldn't stand in the way of friendship or admiration.  I trust many of you are actually life-size and hope you enjoyed a wonderful holiday season with friends and family.

 We had a full house this year with Christmas coffee, a Bavarian breakfast for my husband's soccer team and a family Christmas Eve featuring a fondue with seven sauces and more presents for the kids that I remember getting throughout my entire childhood.  On Christmas morning the kids shook out their stockings, played with their new marble run and we started a new family tradition: building a robot.

My husband bought Lego Mindstorm for our 8-year-old daughter, who inexplicably understands electric wiring, motors and things of that kind.  Not from me, I assure you.  She assembled and programmed her first robot in about a half hour.  My husband helped at first but at some point he was just slowing her down.

The robot has a sensor.  As it approaches a wall it backs up and tries a different direction.  Then it asks for a color.  If you show it the right color it says, 'Fantastic!'  If you show it the wrong color it shoots you with a marble, thanks you and tells you to have a nice day.

That's my girl.  Her robotics skill is her own but she has my eyes.

Now then, here's some don't miss holiday reading for those golden hours while you're sitting around the fireplace with your family and an iPad in your lap, thinking that checking email feels too much like work:

Women of HR is running a 2-week 'Best of Women of HR' series.  Check it out!

Paul Smith has posted a wonderful holiday HR Carnival over at Welcome to the Occupation, full of  thoughtful and expensive presents.

Compensation Cafe is always worth a read but since this is my blog I'm going to point you to my own most recent post on creating value with a limited rewards budget.  While you're over there be sure to check out a few other posts, too - the Cafe is a great multi-writer resource for rewards, fair pay, appreciation, employee motivation or talent management.

And while we're on the topic, Happy New Year!

German Companies Doing Good Things

Just a quick hat tip to three German companies that are blazing environmental and modern workforce trails for the rest of us:

1. Siemens for opting out of the nuclear business, a brave decision that shows big companies can do the right thing.
2. Deutsche Telekom for providing flexible working hours and supporting a family-friendly work environment.
3. Volkswagon for turning off Blackberry email after hours to promote a better work life balance for employees.

Well done, you! And Merry Christmas (or happy holidays) to everyone.

Project Social: The Happy Post

I recently read an article called 12 Things Happy People Do Differently, and was struck by how closely it mirrored my recent thoughts.  In fact, here are my tips for having a magical holiday season and a happier year to come.  You’ll be amazed at the similarities.

No, I didn’t copy, it’s just that great minds think alike!  (And speaking of great minds, be sure to check out what Dave and Lyn have to say this holiday season over at HR Official and The HR Bacon Hut).

Here are my tips for leading a happier life - In all honesty, I don't always follow them but I am happier when I do:

1. Assume the best - Assuming the best - even if you’re wrong - can give you the confidence and positive energy you need to find the best.
2. Be grateful - There are countless people who have helped you get to where you are today.  Be grateful to them and let the rest go.
3. Be generous - A friend once said to me, ‘We are here to help each other.’  Is there anyone you can help or share with today, in the spirit of those who have helped and shared with you?  
4. Ask for help - No one can do everything alone, which is why the most successful people get lots of help.  Don’t be afraid to ask for what you need and say thank you, in case you didn’t learn that one in kindergarten.
5. Treat yourself - Obsessing about your own comfort or convenience is not the road to happiness but a facial or a little cake at the right moment goes a long way toward making everything right with the world. 
6. Make time for people - People are social animals and die sooner without meaningful social contact.  Don’t make a habit of neglecting family and friends for things that don't matter - and if you tell yourself you're 'doing it for them' on a too regular basis, give yourself the hairy eyeball.
7. Be in the moment - You're sitting here reading this post, breathing air on a planet that circles a sun in a solar system in an enormous galaxy that is actually a tiny blip in an enormous universe made up primarily of nothing - or maybe bozons, I wasn’t totally clear on that.  Let the shopping list go for a minute and really look at what’s around you. 
8. Be still - Shh!  The health benefits of stillness are well documented.  Find some time every day to be still and watch your thoughts.  Get to know yourself.
9. Believe in yourself - You will fail sometimes.  That’s OK.  Plan what you can plan and prepare what you can prepare.  If it doesn’t work out, take it on the chin and move on.
10. Have faith - Things have a funny way of working out.  Be ready for that open door.

One more thing: I was once driving on an icy road when my windshield fluid ran out.  My window promptly started to fog, making it difficult to see the oncoming traffic.  And wouldn’t you know it, my cell phone was dead, so pulling over wasn’t an attractive option.  I was just on the verge of getting really worried about the fact that I was driving 80km/hr on a 2-way road  I could no longer see when a truck rattled by, narrowly missing me and splashing my windshield with some extra windshield fluid.  The ice promptly melted and I could see again.  Was that a miracle?  I’m inclined to think it was, just like my kids are a miracle, autumn leaves are a miracle and social networks are a miracle.

Miracles are all around us.

Merry Christmas!

Good Management: How Do You Measure Up?

The importance of good management for engagement, retention and overall company performance has been a central theme of the blog from the very beginning.

In fact, one of my early posts on talent management boldly asserted that 'the quality of managers is the single most important thing you can get right.' 

Periodically I get sidetracked by other HR-related topics but I always have a hard spot in my heart for inept managers.

Which isn't entirely fair because most managers don't set out to be bad managers.  It's not the master plan, so to speak.  It usually just sort of happens through a combination of stress, neglect and poor communication skills.

This is either a wake up call or a golden opportunity for HR.  If talent matters, and surveys tell us that talent is both scarce and pretty disgruntled at the moment, corporate focus will inevitably start shifting to the people who manage that talent. 

Mediocre managers will need to evolve into leaders who can inspire people to give their best... and it'll take more than a memo or a KBO to make that happen.

Someone will have to offer managers the same support and leadership that is expected of them.  Someone will have to mentor managers and actively measure how effective they are, not just in terms of output and deadlines but also in terms of team performance, engagement and retention. 

Remember this: Poor managers tend to be poorly managed themselves.

As more is expected of them, managers will also demand better tools to support their improved management style.  Think about it: If you ask a manager to lead a modern global team (multi-generational, multi-cultural, remote, contingent, etc.) then saddle him or her with a cumbersome annual performance management tool or make it really hard to access workforce information from anywhere except an office computer you are failing that manager.

So here are some fun HR projects to consider that will help managers manage better and have the potential to create real business value in 2012:

• Define metrics to measure manager quality today and measure it.
• Put a manager mentoring and development program in place and execute on it.
• Provide managers with better management tools and access to relevant business data.

Did I forget anything?  Please, poke holes!

The OD Post: Squandering Talent and Hoarding Information

...in which I point you to my two most recent Compensation Cafe posts:

Turkey Talk: Squandering Talent - It was the day before Thanksgiving, OK?  I was fresh out of turkey puns.  Even to me, it happens.  This post includes a book review from Malcolm Gladwell's latest book Outliers.  Since Malcolm Gladwell was recently named one of the ten top business thinkers of 2011, if you don't plan to read his book at least read this post so you don't sound ignorant about the whole '10,000 hours' thing.

Why Should I Help You?  I'm just nice that way.  Really, I'm very helpful.  Several people have said so.  Unfortunately, not everyone is as helpful as I am, which is why the topic of this post is how organizations can inspire people to share what they know.

Enjoy!