Not for Profits - get with this century!

My response to this article: http://philanthropy.com/article/What-Nonprofits-Should-Start/143699/

Not for profits should stop doing the same things they've always done and review what is and isn't working. Case in point - I've received at least 10 cheap pens from various not for profits soliciting for donations and its annoying. Stop spending money on cheap pens trying to guilt me into giving money because you sent me something. Also, stop sending address labels - most billing is now managed online and there are only so many cards and letters being mailed - hence the reason the Post Office is down sizing. Get with this century.

What not for profits need to do is make their websites responsive design and fully accessible. They need to personalize the experience. They need to get creative in making the giving experience engaging and allow for the opportunity to customize the experience and relationship.

People are smarter and have access to so much information, so not for profits need to break through the noise and tell stories that people relate to and can respond to quickly.

Web domain extensions - what now?

Domain Extensions

In this article about KPMG applying for the .kpmg extension or what they are calling "generic top-level domain (gTLD)" they site the advantages of having a closed registry "superfast servers at the root of the Internet". They also site SEO but that's a fairly weak argument. And they mention that there is a sense of security or authenticity since it officially has to be a KPMG company since no one else can register for it - that might be the strongest argument for most. However, they don't have any short term plans to change their email addresses from having a .com extension. We'll have to see what the real advantages are.

Another thought, what gTLD's will be available and what is the criteria? Will someone be able to own .OMG or .LOL? We'll have to wait until ICANN  (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) provides more information and see which of the almost 2,000 applicants they approve. There is a guidebook available on their site.

Device Extensions

What is interesting to note in the article is that "the amount of machine-to-machine Internet communications will eclipse human-generated Internet traffic" - it's rather scary to know that your smart phone is going to be exchanging more communications than you are with your other digital devices - think home security, fridge, heating system, lighting system, car - anything with a computer chip. The more "communications" exchanged the more data there is about you being collected and shared - and no security system is secure enough. So the extension I'm more concerned about is in the future when our devices connect and extend the data about us to each other and throughout the Internet.

What's in a brand?

Brand means different things to different people, even when you think they're saying the same thing. Understanding what brand means to and for you is critical before developing it further or investing in it. Its also important to understand what agencies do and don't do when it comes to branding.

Brand Perspective

In "Brand: It ain't the logo" by Ted Mathews he indicates its what people think about you and stresses that its the culture of the organization. Arlene Dickinson in her book Persuasion also says its how people perceive you. And I believe Seth Godin is attributed with saying "Your brand is what Google says it is". But its not that simple. Its more than just what people think or perceive internally and externally. Its a combination of factual accounts - how long you've been in existence and your financial performance; what your internal culture is and if it is aligned to what you say in your recruiting campaigns; what your advertising says or claims and what is actually being delivered; what your clients/customers say about you; and its a bit about vision, what you want to be.

Representing and Conveying Brand

Then there is how the brand is represented - for some small companies it may just be a name or logo; for others it also includes colour families, fonts, styles, photo type (both style and content including action), and messaging (including word use and style).

And then there is how the brand is conveyed through different channels including print collateral, ads in print, online ads, online properties, and even office facility signage etc.

Phased Approach

The main mistake agencies make when being engaged to create a brand is only talking with executives. Every agency takes a consulting phased approach - discovery/research, assessment, strategy, implementation/activation, measure/review.

Discovery Phase

During the discovery or research phase most agencies interview or meet with executives and they forget that the brand isn't just a vision, its also what is going on in the depths of the company and how that is being conveyed to customers. I've found that you get the best perspective by asking the receptionist, the call centre staff, IT personnel, finance, human resources - recruiters and talent managers, marketers and any front line staff. Sure the C-Suite know where they want the company to go and they have performance figures but true understanding of what a company is comes from staff. And then the same goes for interviews of clients - its not enough to ask a few executives what they think but also the staff that deal with the services and products - that is if you're brave enough to get a full perspective.

Assessment Phase

The next thing in a branding strategy is for the agency to assess all the information they've gathered and feed it back to you to tell you what the perspectives are about you. Here is another mistake agencies make because they are conscious of who is paying their fees - they will allow the executives to reinterpret the assessment to fit in with what they want it to be and thereby create a gap from what is to what is desired. If that gap isn't addressed, i.e. how are you getting from current state to desired state, then the gap will widen and there will be problems for the company and not just the brand.

Brand Strategy

This plays right into the strategy for the brand as well, if the executives want to continue doing everything they've been doing because that is their comfort level rather than setting achievable objectives and developing tactics to reach the defined goals, they'll resist any new development or positioning for the brand. This is especially tough when you're asking for budget to do new things that the executive don't understand. You need to continually educate the executive on what the value of the brand is and what can be achieved by promoting it.

Implementing the Brand

That leads to the implementation or activation phase. Its not enough to give employees a poster or a promo item like a pen and say there you go that's our brand. Even providing new templates doesn't give the brand its due. Employees need to understand what the brand has been defined as and why. They are your first line into customers and if they don't have it right your customers won't either. A strong internal and external communications strategy needs to be implemented to rollout your brand effectively. And you need to be consistent in your use and messaging otherwise you dilute the brand.

Reviewing the Brand

Finally, you need to review and measure what you've done. I've seen brands rollout with rules that couldn't be implemented because they didn't take into account the online use - both in terms of how and where the logo is used and colour use. Agencies aren't perfect so they can miss a key component. And your business strategy may change or you may need to have a specific focus and need to adapt the brand slightly to incorporate a new direction - be it an acquisition or new line of business. You also need to track on how the messaging is being conveyed and whether its resonating with your customer base - after all, no matter what you think a brand is, it should help your business.

Study on lack of engagement provides fuel for advertisement

Here is a good example of leveraging the recent Gallop report on Engagement and creating a strong promotional piece from the Deepak Chopra Centre on their Workplace Wellbeing program: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMMlRpseT9c

Hating your job is bad for business - Employee Engagement

70% of employees hate their jobs…

Well, what the study really reveals is that 50% of employees are not engaged and an additional 20% are disengaged and not reaching their full potential, according to the Gallup study “State of the American Workplace” http://www.gallup.com/strategicconsulting/163007/state-american-workplace.aspx which surveyed 25 million employees in the US. And of the remaining 30% who are categorized as inspired, only 22% of them are considered engaged and thriving.

Why should companies care?

Employees in the top 25% (those being engaged) have:

·         50% fewer accidents

·         41% fewer quality defects

·         And incur less healthcare costs

Organizations with a high ratio of engaged employees (the survey cites 9.3:1 engaged to disengaged) have 147% higher earnings per share (EPS).  

Dis-engaged employees cost

Gallup goes on to indicate that the cost of a bad manager is $450 Billion to $550 Billion annually.

The cost of presenteeism, a measure of lost productivity cost due to an employee at work but not engaged usually due to mental, emotional or physical health issues, is now considered to cost 7.5 times more than absenteeism, or approximately $2,000 per employee annually (Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?Presenteeism:-The-Hidden-Costs-of-Business&id=40408).

Who are the employees?

Contrary to what some think, remote workers actually log more hours than their onsite counterparts; and women on average are slightly more engaged than men.
However, millennials are more likely to consider another job after 12 months in a job; they are also more likely to consider becoming their own boss.

How do you improve employee engagement?

Ask. Listen. Act.

Conducting employee engagement surveys is an art that frankly has been abused. It’s not enough to ask questions – they need to be questions that can be acted upon and that are highly relevant. Employers need to follow up with action quickly after surveying employees or its all for not. Employees will feel that they aren’t being listened to if issues and ideas aren’t addressed. The best thing a company can do is to communicate – even if there are some issues that can’t be solved quickly, acknowledging them goes a long way in making an employee feel their opinions and feelings are being considered and respected.

Leadership engagement

Engagement must be supported from the top down in order for it to rise up! Managers play a key role in engagement but they must feel empowered and supported by leadership to make any impact. Trust needs to be built through consistency in words and actions with transparency in communications. The company culture, goals and brands need to be communicated. Employees who understand a company’s goals and their role in achieving those goals are more likely to take pride in their work.

Managers need to be skilled in supporting and empowering their staff by listening and focusing on an employee’s strengths and talents. The manager needs to work with employee to set achievable goals and help them to track their success. Employees need to understand how they can grow their career and what their role is and how it can evolve.

Getting to Employee Engagement

Communicate. Communicate. Communicate.

A good communication strategy is implemented to allow two way communications. Employees want to understand what the company does and their role. In a research report by Blessing White: The Employee Engagement Report Update http://www.blessingwhite.com/EEE__report.asp

The top contributors to drive engagement are:

·         Greater clarity about what the organization needs me to do – and why (align employee goals and performance to the company’s)

·         More resources (provide employees with the support they need to achieve their goals)

·         Regular, specific feedback about how I’m doing (managers need to constructively tell employees how they are doing and how they can improve)

·         Development opportunities and training (managers should work with employees to identify opportunities for growth and learning)

·         A coach or mentor other than my manager (leadership should support coaching and mentoring as a means to develop staff)

·         Better communication with my manager (weekly meetings and reporting schedules, as well as performance sessions should be implemented)

·         A better relationship with my coworkers (supporting a team environment including social activities that encourage interaction as well as communication mechanisms to highlight employee achievements)

 It’s important to recognize that people are motivated by different things – money, recognition, environment, relationships, etc. But everyone wants to feel that they are being heard. So listening to your employees is key to understanding them. And then keeping the communication channels open so there is a two way conversation occurring in the organization is the best way to support engagement.

 

Managing change or not...

Whether the company is going through a re-organization, a downsizing or a merger, change management is key but most organizations do not do it effectively. Usually there is minimum communications and considerable miscommunications - let's face it people talk and they spread what they think they know - right or wrong.

If you're re-organizing you should have:

• a clear understanding of what people do; jobs change over time so job descriptions need to be up-to-date
• a skills assessment of staff; they may have taken on tasks or further education or they may be struggling with duties they can't manage
• an impact assessment - if you're going to let people go what duties need to be redistributed and how can that be done with the least disruption; what are the implications if they manage several email addresses or committees; are there processes that they manage or have a  role in; - its not just the what its also the who
• a communication strategy; if you are re-organizing and people will have different reporting structures have follow-up meetings for the new teams so they have the opportunity to ask questions. It's far better to get everything in the open right away rather than let people disperse to ask questions of people who don't know the answers or to complain to each other that they don't know what is  going on; people have a right to be concerned and worried and the best way to alleviate that is to communicate and get them in a productive environment as soon as possible
• a talent management strategy; if people suddenly become people managers they need to have the maturity, skills and resources to fulfill the duties required of them; and if they go f rom managing one or two staff to a dozen additional skills may need to be learned including conflict management, communications, and time management; otherwise the Peter Principal comes into play and no one is happy

It's equally important to know what you shouldn't do:

• don't lie, people figure things out sooner or later and they talk with each other; lies destroy trust and credibility and you will never achieve employee engagement or loyalty
• don't hide, being unavailable at a critical time reflects poorly - it can be interpreted as not caring and can foster distrust
• don't ignore, if staff have come forward with concerns about process, resources and responsibilities acknowledge them and create a plan to deal with those concerns in a timely manner (this really should be in the planning phase prior to the change)

Change isn't easy - but it shouldn't be so hard...