WILDCAT ONE NEWSLETTER

TROUBLESHOOTER NEWSLETTER: Spring 07

Welcome to Wildcat One's Troubleshooter newsletter. In this edition:

TRADE SECRETS - NEGOTIATIONS

At some stage in our careers we're faced with the need to negotiate - whether it's a major commercial deal, the annual pay round, or improvements to our own terms and conditions. Rather than provide a comprehensive set of 'how to...' skills, these notes are intended as a refresher.

  1. Always do your homework thoroughly, to gauge what the other side might be looking for - or might settle for. Understanding the context to the negotiation is also important as it may give indications of what particular bargaining levers exist and how you can counter or exploit them.

  2. Clearly determine what you really want from the deal and the minimum you are prepared to accept.

  3. Take things one at a time, try to trade on each point and resist the temptation to bundle a number of issues together to negotiate on. Something (often a big thing) usually gets lost in the mix. When involved in a big deal, constantly review progress and check that you’re covering all the ground.

  4. Don’t allow yourself to be rushed – especially on important points. Take what time you need to consider what is being proposed, how that measures up to your objectives for the deal and, as a result, how you want to respond.

  5. Build up a good level of rapport with the other side and show them respect. Showing that you understand where they are coming from helps with this (achieving a degree of empathy also helps to predict likely tactics and questions). Avoid point scoring at their expense and always remain aware of the effect you (or your colleagues) are having on them – watch for shifts in language, tone, body language and expressions. Striking the wrong chord here can compromise a deal (or the quality of the deal).

  6. If you find yourself getting stuck on one point, try to keep the overall momentum of the negotiation going - perhaps by working on less contentious areas, ‘small wins’ etc, whilst finding scope for manoeuvre with the big one. Be on the lookout for hidden constraints (or opportunities) that may potentially prevent (or enable) a deal.

  7. Keep a good record of everything that has been agreed and what’s still to play for. Get someone to take notes if you can, so you can remain focused on the negotiation.

  8. Once agreement has been reached, close the deal firmly. Confirm all the items that have been agreed and the nature of what has been agreed. Follow through on the detail at this stage is vital, before memories fade or become ‘rose tinted’.

NEWS DIGEST

Email abuse

A woman who roundly insulted her boss, by calling him names such as ‘blob’ and ‘that fat thing’ in emails to her colleagues, was found to have been unfairly dismissed by an industrial tribunal recently. However, her compensation was reduced because the tribunal believed she was the agent of her own downfall. »

Wildcat's view: This is an interesting reversal of the usual harassment cases we tend to hear about, as it shows how employees can actively seek to undermine the credibility and possibly the confidence of their managers. Bullying and harassment isn't just a one-way street and often 'abuse' against managers can be quite insidious and difficult to prove. Many organisations take the view that 'it comes with the managerial territory', although surely respect works both ways. However, if you must 'bad mouth' your boss - be a bit more discrete!

High earners motivated by more than pay

Those earners who are at the higher end of the salary bonus scale are, over time, are less likely to find money as the prime motivator and companies are having to be increasingly creative not only in retaining these staff, but also encouraging them to go the extra mile. Recent studies suggest that high earners tend to be highly competitive and want to be seen as successful – recognition, therefore, becomes an important element of the pay and benefits mix. Although eschewed by many, recognition schemes are beginning to gain a foothold in a number of international banks. »

Wildcat's view: Financial reward eventually becomes another 'hygiene factor' for high earners after a while. In fact, far from representing the long term motivational incentives intended, salary, bonus levels and even equity can actually become an issue of discontent. When you get to a certain income level - so the theory goes - people lose interest in just earning more money. So, how can organisations keep their best and most valuable people? It sounds easy to say, but meaningful, challenging and responsible roles, with a clear contribution to the organisation's overall goals are an important starting point. What makes the difference though is visible, demonstrable and continuous recognition of their achievements and constant encouragement to develop and grow their capabilities still further. Oh, and recognising there’s a heart and soul, rather than just a productivity machine makes a big difference too. Ah, the power that lies in a simple 'thank you'.

Measure what matters

The Chartered Institute of Management has recently published research which seeks to identify the most important human capital management (HCM) measures. The research, which was conducted among senior directors and investors, recommends a three tier approach for HCM measurement and reporting. This ranges from the basic HR and workplace measures, to performance indicators and, finally – at the most sophisticated level – to strategic, organisationally specific measures of alignment between workforce capability and strategy.»

Wildcat's view: Whoever said 'there are lies, damned lies and statistics' had a point. A lot of time and effort is spent collating and interpreting data - formulating indicators, scorecards and dashboards, which are of questionable value to performance measurement or decision making - on either strategic or operational levels. The case of employee related data - which can be less tangible and where the impact of strategies and interventions can be more long term - has been a particularly thorny one for establishing meaningful human capital management indices. So, this work by the CIM should be interesting. However, there are a lot of HCM 'experts' out there these days, so who are you to believe? Focus on the outputs the business needs to achieve, rather than activities that are easy to measure. What are the critical people-related factors? Is it retention and, if so, where and at what levels - what's an acceptable rate of turnover and what isn't? Is it attraction/recruitment strategy? Talent management? Health and safety? Customer service? Are your indices giving you a strategically balanced picture? Forget dashboards - if all your jigsaw pieces aren't adding up to the picture you want or expect on the box-lid, it's time to revisit!

WILDCAT ONE NEWS

Nanthomba School, Liwonde, Malawi

You may remember that Wildcat One recently made a donation to a school in Liwonde, in Malawi, visited by Pat Tomlin when she was on a speaking engagement in the country. Volunteer teachers run the school for over 800 children. Many of these children come from impoverished backgrounds and over a quarter of them are orphans, due to the aids pandemic in Malawi.

The head teacher, Maston Tambala, was over the moon with the donation and reports that the money has enabled the school to provide text books, exercise books and pencils for all the children, as well as school uniforms for 20 very vulnerable orphans. Chalk, boards and sun-shades have also been purchased for the school.

Malawi: Pupils at LiwondeMalawi:Nanthomba School

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Children at Nanthomaba School, Malawi

Coaching at Christmas

Last December, we gave clients the chance of an early Christmas present (as well as seeking to raise money for charity).
We offered the opportunity of a free coaching session –and asked those who took advantage of the session to consider making a small contribution to charity.
The idea was very popular and many clients took up the December-only offer. The coaching was well received, with plenty of good feedback about how useful it was and in particular, how much you could get through in a one-hour coaching session! Wildcat One particularly wants to say a big thank you to all those who offered to make a donation. These will go to the Macmillan Cancer Support charity.

In fact, everyone seemed so taken with the idea, that Wildcat One may do something similar this Christmas – so watch this space. If you can’t wait that long, why not contact Wildcat One to discuss what coaching can achieve.

AND FINALLY…

The no bullies rule?

How do people get away with it?

A woman who worked in a small office became pregnant and naturally had to increase her number of visits to the ladies. Her boss noted how many minutes she was gone each time and took the minutes out of her lunch hour.
One American film producer had 109 assistants in 5 years, not counting those who stayed less than two weeks - he fired one for buying him the wrong muffin.
One Silicon Valley company employed a salesman who constantly abused staff. The company calculated they spent £80,000 on hiring new staff and on management time rectifying problems.

Bob Sutton's book Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving one that isn't" also entitled the "No Asshole Rule", explores the phenomenon of workplace bullying and gives companies tips on how to avoid employing the wrong people in the first place.

Apparently, one acid test is the ' Starbucks Rule ' where the more complicated the order - the bigger the asshole. So, ordering "a decaf grande half-soy, half-low fat, iced vanilla, double-shot, gingerbread cappuccino, extra dry, light ice, with one candarel and one sugar" probably rates quite highly on the asshole Richter scale. Look out for the tell tale signs next time it is your turn to do the coffee run. »