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February 10, 2006

Whatever Happened to Employee Loyalty?
The past few years have witnessed the beginnings of a revolution in workplace values. Just as the "Millennial" generation has begun entering the workforce, employers have begun to realize that corporate culture is no longer a fuzzy issue. Employee loyalty has become the new "hot button" issue for the decade.

In times past most employers could count on simple self-interest to keep employees "in the fold." With enticements such as pensions and other fringe benefits employers used to be in the driver’s seat when it came to recruiting, hiring and retaining staff. Most employees used to think twice before jumping ship!

Things are very different today. With rising global competition and an impending labor shortage it’s your employees who are now in the driver’s seat. Most companies can’t afford luxurious benefits these days (remember the old phrase Golden Handcuffs?) to keep employees loyal. That may mean an looming shake-up for some organizations.

Who’s Exploring the Job Market in 2006?
The answer may be … your employees (if recent survey results are any indication). KEYGroup’s recent survey of 1,700 employees revealed that worker loyalty is rapidly becoming a bread-and-butter issue for many organizations. With one in five employees reporting that they planned to look for another job in 2006, employers have to sit up and take notice that they risk losing employees they can’t afford to replace.

Joanne G. Sujansky, CEO and founder of KEYGroup, explained that "What I’m seeing in my work with clients is that the best and the brightest employees -- the kind you want to have working for you -- know they’re in demand. Why? Well, my theory is that in difficult times, people re-think their priorities. They get focused on what really matters to them. And you know, working long hours for a job that’s unfulfilling isn’t going to make the cut."

"You must make sure your employees are fully engaged and energized," Sujansky points out. "Treat them like holistic individuals who have lives outside the office. They’ll be grateful and will reward you with their hard work and loyalty. And chances are, they won’t be one of the 18 percent who, right now, are surfing career websites and calling headhunters."

For more information about this eye-opening survey, call KEYGroup at 724-942-7900.

VEO … The New Face of Loyalty
Fortunately, there’s good news for today’s organizations. There’s a new face of loyalty entering the marketplace and it promises to revitalize those organizations that pay attention to critical issues of culture. The companies that will survive and thrive in the years ahead are those in which every employee thinks and acts like an owner. At KEYGroup, we call this type of company a Vibrant Entrepreneurial Organization, or VEO.

A VEO recognizes that two-way loyalty is necessary for a strong, resilient, growth-oriented organization. It’s simple: you give your employees what they need to meet their goals. In return, they advance your corporate vision and boost your profitability.

Employee loyalty isn’t dead (unless you’re talking about the "toe-the-company-line-for-thirty-years-and-retire-with-a-gold-watch brand" of loyalty from yesteryear). But, how do you instill that seemingly elusive sense of ownership among employees?

Most employees (the ones worth keeping, anyway) aren’t just looking for a place to go, put in their time, and collect a paycheck. They want challenging, meaningful, enriching work. In return, they look for ways to build and improve their company’s future. If they feel that they can easily be replaced, they will look elsewhere for opportunities. When you lose people, you risk losing intellectual capital that’s difficult to replace.

How Do Loyalty Issues Affect You?
Are you working within an organization that values loyalty? Does your employer offer personal growth opportunities in return for your hard work? If so, then you may be seeing the new face of loyalty "at work." If not, you may be part of a workplace that suffers from loyalty-related problems. Ask yourself how the following factors affect you in your job:

1.) How many opportunities for personal growth and professional development does your organization offer to employees?

___ Many Opportunities ___ Limited Opportunities ___ Few Opportunities

2.) How often does poor employee morale and disorganization affect you at work?

___ Occasionally ___Sometimes ___ Frequently

3.) To what extent do you feel that your organization gives you the resources and support you need to accomplish your goals?

___ Full Support ___ Limited Support ___ Little Support

Whether you are just one of the rank and file or one of your organization’s leaders, you have a vested interest in creating a climate of two-way loyalty. How can your organization turn things around? Fortunately, there are positive steps that can build employees’ sense of ownership:
Stretch Your Employees - Leaders in entrepreneurial cultures seek to challenge, inspire, and enhance their people. They create ways that people can use their unique skills and talents to advance the company’s vision.

Provide the Resources and Support Your People Need - Leaders help their employees to get the resources and support they need to accomplish their goals. They provide opportunities for employees to grow and develop, thus becoming more valuable.

Provide Work/Life Balance -- People stay at companies that view them as complete human beings. Salary matters, of course, but a healthy work/life balance means as much to most employees. To some employees it means even more. Employees want to know that you value their personal life as well as what they bring to the company.

The New "Slanguage" of Loyalty
Are your employees engaged or bored? Motivated or distracted? Loyal, long-term employees or short-timers? If you’re not entirely sure, try tuning in to some of the new slang terms running around the office. The way employees talk about their jobs and coworkers can yield significant clues about their states-of-mind. A recent article in Training and Development Journal highlighted some of the new office slang to be found at www.officeslang.com. Following are a few of the more intriguing (and telling) ways that employees talk about their jobs these days:

"Adminisphere" - The rarified organizational layers above the rank and file that makes decisions that are often profoundly inappropriate or irrelevant.

"Blamestorming" - A group discussion of why a deadline was missed or a project failed and who was responsible.

"Chainsaw Consultant" - An outside expert brought in to reduce the employee head count, leaving the top brass with clean hands.

"Cube Farm" - An office filled with cubicles.

"Flight Risk" - Used to describe employees who are suspected of planning to leave a company or department soon.

"A G.O.O.D. Job" - Otherwise known as a ‘Get-Out-Of-Debt’ job, this is a well-paying job people take just to pay off their debts before quitting for a job they really want.

"Perot" – (Pronounced ‘per-oh’) A verb meaning to quit unexpectedly, just like the former presidential candidate. As in "My cell phone just "Perot’d."

"Plug-and-Play" - A new hire who doesn’t require training. "That new guy is totally plug-and-play."

"Tourists" - Employees who attend training classes just to take a vacation from their jobs. "There were only three serious students in the class; the rest were just tourists."

"Uninstalled" - Euphemism for being fired. Also: "De-cruitment."

For more new office slang, visit www.officeslang.com

In the news …

Steeler Loyalty Produces Winning Tradition
A recent Associated Press article highlighted the connection between corporate culture and success. In Steelers Make Good Business Model, Experts Say by Jennifer C. Yates, (Centre Daily Times, Friday, Feb. 3, 2006) the team’s long-term stability creates an environment in which two-way loyalty can thrive. The coach of the Super Bowl XL Champions, Bill Cowher, touched on the franchise’s culture when he is quoted as saying "The Rooneys have been doing this a long time and they've had a great history of success so I don't know what the model is … I know there is a very open relationship that exists within the building."

Among the experts commenting on the management style of the Rooney family, which owns the Steelers, is Dr. Joanne Sujansky, CSP, who says "The Steelers' winning tradition didn't start yesterday … It started when Art Rooney purchased the franchise 73 years ago and set in motion a strategy for success that embraced his vision and values." Loyalty, which the Rooney’s exemplify, is one of the critical values that foster a Vibrant Entrepreneurial Organization, the type of corporate culture that produces a winning season. For more information on Vibrant Entrepreneurial Organizations visit www.keygroupconsulting.com.

Help Your Employees To Reach New Heights
In a VEO, leaders make sure their employees have what they need to succeed. You can help your employees reach for higher levels of success by giving them a copy of Dr. Joanne Sujansky’s book The Keys to Unlocking Your Potential. This concise and focused book will help your people to gain specific, practical techniques for unlocking their full potential and achieving their dreams. It will help them to get focused on priorities, discover their giftedness, and improve their physical and mental fitness!

To order The Keys to Unlocking Your Potential click here.

All contents copyright 2005 by KEYGroup® Contents may not be reproduced without permission.

To learn more about how you can create a Vibrant Entrepreneurial Organization contact KEYGroup® at 724-942-7900 or visitour websites www.keygroupconsulting.com and www.joannesujansky.com.