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Latest News
September 10th, 2010
Thea O'Connor [1] of Intheblack magazine offers the following tips for helping employees avoid overwork:
• Highlight and discuss any workplace “cultural norms” that would encourage employees to work excessive hours
• Make overwork an Occupational Health and Safety issue
• Regularly review staff workloads, deadlines required, and available resources to determine if the organisation has the balance right
• Train employees in delegation and time management skills
• Encourage personnel to focus on the rate and quality of their work rather than number of hours worked
• Provide uninterrupted focus-time for employees
• Limit “out of hours” accessibility to employees
• Celebrate milestones and successes regularly
• Invest in work-life balance initiatives that promote healthy self-care
• Model desired behaviour so that staff will understand that they are permitted to stop for lunch and to leave on time
• Become familiar with following signs of work addiction:
o Spending more time at work than anything else
o Promising to reduce work hours and failing to follow through
o Denying working too hard
o Having difficulty releasing and delegating work
o Deteriorating health due to an excessive work schedule
o Impatience, irritability, weight changes, high blood pressure, stress, or depression
o Work eroding your intimate friendships, hobbies and social life
o Not being able to relax when not working
o Having unrealistic expectations for yourself and others
[1] R10954 O'Connor, T., (2006), When work becomes your fix, Intheblack, Vol 76, Iss 4, pp 74-76, CPA Australia, Melbourne
Neil Crawford
BPIR
Members may read the full article here
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September 10th, 2010
 Jessica Jeppsson [1] from the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at North Carolina State University writes that the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health reported that 50% of all employees in office settings are often so engaged in computer work that they forget to take breaks.
This can lead to headaches, wrist pain, back discomfort and eye strain. To eliminate this, and to prevent repetitive stress injuries, ergonomic software can be installed on workplace computers to prompt users to take regular breaks. The frequency of the breaks can be based on mouse clicks, keyboard strokes, the duration of breaks taken, and the frequency of the prompts given.
When a break is triggered a software window pops up on the screen, the user can then choose to activate the break or to ignore it. When activated, animations display hand, neck and shoulder stretches which are designed to interrupt the repetitive nature of computer work, increase circulation, relieve tension and give the user an energy boost.
[1] R10853 Jeppsson, J., (2009), Workspace comfort, Industrial Engineer, Vol 41, Iss 3, pp 58-59, Institute of Industrial Engineers-Publisher, Norcross
Neil Crawford
BPIR
Members may read the full article here
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August 16th, 2010
Due to public pressure on Wall Street CEOs to lower top management compensation and following Obama’s administration plans to order large cuts in executive compensation at companies that have received federal bailout funds many executives received a $500,000 pay cap and others received a very large pay cut, for example in 2008 Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan, made over $35 million but in 2009 he made “only” $1.3 million.
Does this mean that the CEOs were over-valued or in other words they were not worth it? This would indeed be the opinion of most people. However, this may not be correct according to a new research done by Dr. Candie Chang, a senior finance lecturer in the School of Economics and Finance at Massey University
Chief executives are worth their pay
New research suggests the whopping pay packets of many chief executives may not only be justified but vital to ensure business success.
An analysis of share market responses to chief executives leaving their jobs shows if the company has been performing better than competitors the market reacts more negatively to the news of the chief's departure in anticipation of shareholder wealth loss.
Dr Candie Chang, a senior finance lecturer in the School of Economics and Finance, says her research indicates that a good chief executive officer is worth his or her high salary, bonuses and stock options, despite the somewhat jaundiced public view of high profile excesses revealed during the company collapses of recent years.
Dr Chang's research paper, called CEO Ability, Pay, and Firm Performance, is due to be published in the United States journal Management Science this year. She studied 298 chief executive departures in the United States in the decade from 1992. She says her findings suggest that the stock market associates better prior performance and higher pay with a more capable chief executive. Not only that, but the higher the pay of the departing chief executive compared to other executives in the company, the more negative the stock price reaction.
“The recent financial crisis and the storm over the pay of executives in financial firms have brought the questions of whether chief executives meaningfully add value to the companies they manage, and whether their pay reflects ability or power, into sharp focus,” Dr Chang says.
“Collectively, our results provide strong support for the notion that firm value and performance are not simply outcomes of the firm’s core competency, product markets, or luck. Chief executive talent matters and is rewarded internally and recognised by external markets.”
She also studied where chief executives end up when they leave their companies and found two extremes. The first was that many do not have management positions within three years but at the other end, several move up to bigger firms or better paying jobs.
“We find that chief executive officers are more likely to 'move up' when the market reacts more negatively to their departure,” Dr Chang says. “The results suggest that the managerial labour market associates higher pay and better prior performance with higher chief executive ability and rewards them accordingly.”
Firms that lost a highly paid chief executive suffered a slump in performance after the departure if the prior performance had been good and the stock market reacted negatively to the departure.
August 6th, 2010
The Global Benchmarking Network newsletter is out. Download from here
The newsletter includes the latest news from the GBN about members, events, projects and other activities, topics highlighted in this issue:
- Welcome the new members of our benchmarking community:
- Ruler’s Court of Ajman (United Arab Emirates)
- Abu Dhabi International Centre for Organizational Excellence (United Arab Emirates)
- Intelligent Persian Consultants (IPC), Iran
- TeamOne Consulting / KSA Benchmarking Network, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
- Gulf Lead Consultants, Kuwait
- Next GBN AGM and 5th International Benchmarking Conference:
- Review:
- GBN Roadshow (Mumbai)
- 4th International Benchmarking Conference (Bahrain)
- New structure and members of the GBN Board
- News from the GBN Secretariat and outlines some ideas how the GBN can use social media platforms
About GBN: The Global Benchmarking Network (GBN) is an alliance of leading benchmarking centres worldwide who share a common vision and mission. Current Membership comprises more than 20 benchmarking centres which represent more than 30,000 businesses and government agencies.
The GBN was founded in November 1994 by representatives from benchmarking centres in Germany, Italy, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States. The GBN is a non-profit organization. It has a Chairman, a Vice Chairman and a Secretary General. The GBN comprises benchmarking centres in the following countries: Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, India, Iran, Ireland, Kuwait, Malaysia, Mauritius, New Zealand, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, UAE (Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai), UK and USA.
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July 12th, 2010
If benchmarking today is an established business practice, much of the credit goes to the efforts of Dr Robert C Camp, lifetime president of the Global Benchmarking Network (GBN), principal of the Best Practice Institute, US, and the man known around the world as the guru of benchmarking. Dr Camp was in Mumbai in June for the 2nd GBN Benchmarking Roadshow organised by BestPrax Club (India) and Benchmarking Partnerships (Australia).
Based in Ithaca, New York, Dr Camp works with government agencies, non-profit organisations, educational institutions and many large domestic and international manufacturing and service firms. He has written three books - Benchmarking: The Search for Industry Best Practices that Lead to Superior Performance, Business Process Benchmarking: Finding and Implementing Best Practices and Global Cases in Benchmarking: Best Practices from Organisations Around the World along with dozens of articles on the subject. His first and best-selling book on benchmarking has been translated into 14 languages.
Vivek Dev (from domain-b.com) spoke to Dr Camp on various aspects of benchmarking during his recent visit to Mumbai.
1- Tell us about your personal experience with benchmarking. How were you initiated into the process?
I started with benchmarking when I was at Xerox Corporation. At the time, benchmarking was a fairly new improvement process and I was asked by my manager to implement it in the logistics function.
2- Why should companies benchmark? What does benchmarking achieve?
Benchmarking is an experience where you can learn from others who have solved a problem you are trying to solve. As they have gone through the experience and implemented improvement processes, this learning can be used as the basis for improving one's organisation through internal, competitive, functional or generic benchmarking.
Any organisation can improve provided it is willing to improve. One can almost be assured that the organisation will get value out of the benchmarking exercise.
3- How should a benchmarking investigation be carried?
There is a defined process for carrying out benchmarking. First, you decide what to benchmark, and then decide whom you benchmark against. Next, you gather the information, conduct the analysis, and define the process(es) for best practices search. The benchmarking process is best facilitated with help from a professional benchmarking expert who can act as a guide or mentor. Often, a knowledgeable librarian can offer valuable inputs for information search.
4- Identifying a candidate list for benchmarking is comparable to laying the foundation of an organisation. What factors are considered while putting together a candidate list?
Most of the time people in various functions have a pretty good idea of superior practices in other organisations, so that knowledge is already there in the organisation. People in particular functions, say, logistics, know from various sources, say, trade journals, peers, etc, on how things are done in other organisations. By putting together the knowledge thus available, a list can be prepared.
5- What is the significance of benchmarking in the operations and growth of an organisation? How does it positively impact organisations?
Benchmarking is a fairly fast way to improve and a very powerful way to justify funding. People have been known to achieve significant results with benchmarking in a short time.
6- Is benchmarking relevant across industries (marketing, manufacturing, administrative support, finance and personnel functions)? Can lessons learnt from one be applicable to another? Please give an example.
In certain processes, lessons can be learnt across industries. Typically, there are three types of functions in industry - management, support and operations. While management and support function processes have much in common across industries, the function process of operations is unique to industries. For example, support function processes such as in HR or IT can be benchmarked across industries.
7- What role does benchmarking play in innovation? Can you elaborate?
Benchmarking is a necessary ingredient in innovation. Firstly, it is necessary to benchmark the extent of the innovation focus through a search. Defining the standard or benchmark is in itself a creative process so innovation and benchmarking are concepts that are interlinked from the very start.
Secondly, combining the creative and innovative talents of the innovation team members with the insights gained through benchmarking is a powerful and often revealing experience and may markedly improve the result. Further, the actual process of people going through the exercise opens their minds and brings about new ideas and thinking.
Benchmarking is a critical tool for how you run your business. It is a strategic strength when practiced and a fatal weakness if not pursued.
8- The term best practices is widely used in every stream of business (particularly, insurance, banking and mutual funds) and not-for-profit-enterprises. Does this have any connection with benchmarking?
It is the essence of benchmarking. Benchmarking is a process of finding and implementing best practices. It is the desired output of the benchmarking process. It is only through an understanding of best practices that the way to improvement is revealed.
The process of identifying, understanding and adapting superior practices from organisations locally and worldwide, within and outside the industry, helps an organisation improve its performance and achieve priority business results.
9- What would you say is the value proposition of benchmarking?
I would say 'quick learning to improve'. The important aspect here is 'quick learning'.
10- When and why did you establish the GBN? Does it have a presence in India?
The objective of the GBN, established in 1994, is to have benchmarking competency centres around the globe so that assistance with benchmarking is available locally, and so it can be adapted to local conditions. In India, the GBN is represented by the BestPrax Club, Mumbai, founded by Suresh Lulla.
11- If Indian organisations have to leapfrog into the global arena, can the GBN help in finding benchmarking partners?
The experience of the GBN member organisations would substantiate that finding. Every gathering of those interested in benchmarking, including the recent GBN Roadshow and Executive Briefing, should be used as an opportunity to establish potential partners.
12- With your wealth of experience, how do you visualise India 2020?
A sage person once said, ''I hesitate to make predictions especially when it involves the future!'' I would leave the details of 2020 to the economists and others more knowledgeable of the particulars in India. I would trust however that India would continue to pursue its competitiveness through ''best practice'' benchmarking.
About Dr Robert Camp: Principal, Best Practices Institute, talks on the various aspects of benchmarking in an interview with Vivek Dev Source:
http://www.domain-b.com/people/interviews/20100629_robert_camp.html
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Features/Corporate-Dossier/Benchmarking-with-best-practices-outside-industry-works/articleshow/6116117.cms?curpg=1
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July 11th, 2010
Over the next few months I will be running workshops on TRADE best practice benchmarking in the following countries:
- Aug 17 - 18 : Benchmarking for Excellence, Auckland - New Zealand
Refer to brochure for further information
- Sep 16 - 17 : Benchmarking for Excellence, Singapore
Refer to brochure for further information
- Oct 9 - 11 : Benchmarking for Excellence, Saudi Arabia
- Oct 12 - 14 : Benchmarking for Excellence, Bahrain
Past workshops of 2010
- February 21 - 22 : Benchmarking for Excellence, Kuwait
Refer to brochure for further information
- April 15 -16: Benchmarking for Excellence, Glasgow, UK
Email: Pat Ellenger,
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, Best Practice Club
Refer to brochure for further information
- April 21 -22: Benchmarking for Excellence, London, UK
Email: Pat Ellenger,
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
, Best Practice Club
Refer to brochure for further information
- May 13 - 14: Benchmarking for Excellence - Singapore
Refer to brochure for further information
- May 18 - 20: Benchmarking for Excellence - Kuwait
Refer to brochure for further information
- June 7 - 8 : Benchmarking for Excellence, Abu Dhabi, UAE
Refer to brochure for further information
At these workshops participants will be introduced to TRADE Best Practice Benchmarking - a powerful approach to benchmarking that has been designed to ensure that benchmarking projects are successful and deliver innovative best practices. All those that attend the training will receive a “Benchmarking Awareness” certificate with the opportunity to progress to "Benchmarking Proficiency" and "Benchmarking Mastery".
The training is very practical and participants will work on problems/issues that are relevant to their own organization. Projects can be on such diverse areas as; improving a customer complaint management system, reducing changeover time, best practices in the application of the Balanced Scorecard, becoming an industry leader for a supplier relationship process, developing a winning team culture and reducing the time to recruit new staff.
These were the benfits obtained at a rescent TRADE workshop at Fiji orgainised by the Training and Productivity Authority of Fiji. We also offer In-house training courses. For more information on TRADE refer to http://www.coer.org.nz/trade
Best regards
Robin
Dr Robin Mann, Commercial Director and Part-Owner, BPIR.com Limited,
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July 7th, 2010
Veronica Marsden [1] president of Canadian organisation “Tri Fit” suggests the following 10 simple ways for keeping fit at work:
- Take five-minute stretch breaks.
- Organise a walking club.
- Park your car at the far end of the parking lot, or at a distance from work.
- Cycle to work.
- Get off the bus or subway one stop earlier.
- Deliver a message on foot instead of by email.
- Organize a lunchtime exercise class.
- Hold meetings outside and walk while you talk.
- Use washroom facilities furthest away from your workstation.
- Set an alarm to remind you to get up and move around every hour.
[1] R10857 Marsden, V., (2010), Taking fitness and nutrition beyond 'flavour of the month', Canadian HR Reporter, Vol 23, Iss 11, p 17, Carswell Publishing, Scarborough
Neil Crawford
BPIR
Members may read the full article here .
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July 4th, 2010
Patient handoffs, both within hospitals and elsewhere, are often subject to errors. A 2005 Joint Commission analysis found that 70% of events which resulted in a patient’s death or serious physical/psychological injury were caused by communication breakdowns, half of which occurred during patient handoffs. Lee Ann Runy [1] writes that The key effective handoffs is to implement processes that clearly define the transfer of responsibility from one caregiver to another, standardize the communication process, and allow for an interactive exchange between the parties involved. The common denominator should always be the patient. Various tools and techniques can be implemented to streamline the handoff process and establish standardised communications. Structured tools e.g. mnemonics, templates or checklists can help to ensure that information is not lost during the handoff, and lead to a timely, accurate exchange of information.
The following are 10 tips for effective patient handoffs: [1]
- Ensure face-to-face patient handoffs whenever possible
- Ensure two-way communication during the handoff process
- Allow as much time as necessary for handoffs
- Use both verbal and written means of communication
- Conduct handoffs at the patient bedside whenever possible. Involve patients and families in the handoff process. Provide clear information at discharge
- Involve staff in the development of handoff standards
- Incorporate communication techniques, such as the SBAR mnemonic (Situation-Background-Assessment-Recommendation), and require a verification process to ensure that information is both received and understood
- In addition to information exchange, handoffs should clearly outline the transfer of patient responsibility from one provider to another
- Use available technology, such as electronic medical records, to streamline the exchange of timely, accurate information
- Monitor use and effectiveness of the handoff and seek ongoing feedback from staff members.
[1] R10938 Runy, L. A., (2008), Patient Handoffs, Hospitals & Health Networks, Vol 82, Iss 5, pp 41-47, Health Forum Inc., Chicago
Neil Crawford
BPIR
Members may read the full article here which provides further advice about recognition schemes.
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July 1st, 2010
Barton Goldsmith [1] writes that you may be a workaholic if you:
- Are more comfortable at work than in any other environment,
- Feel as if you can't take a vacation,
- Can’t shut off from work for a few days.
- Use work as an escape,
- Use your home as a "satellite office”,
- Are unable to relax and enjoy free time or feel at peace when not thinking about or doing work.
Hard work and achievement are good things but should never take the place of loved ones or of taking care of your own wellbeing. In order to maintain good health we need to build downtime into our schedule. At Website www.workaholics-anonymous.org you can learn how to modify work-life balance.
[1] R10923 Goldsmith, B., (2007), the workaholic, Office Solutions, Vol 24, Iss 3, p 45, Quality Publishing, Inc., Mt. Airy
Neil Crawford
BPIR
Members may read the full article by clicking here.
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June 14th, 2010
Hello all,
Here is a great article on being a workaholic that has been provided by Adam Stoehr of the National Quality Institute in Canada. The National Quality Institute, http://www.nqi.ca, are BPIR.com’s partner for Canada.
My Name is Clark Kent and I’m a Workaholic
By: Adam Stoehr, MBA, BBA, NQI CEP®
Vice President, Educational Services
National Quality Institute
Hello, my name is Clark Kent and I’m a workaholic. It has been 12 months since I missed an important date in my kids’ lives. It has been12 months since I thought about work on a Sunday afternoon. It has been 12 months since I worked beyond what is reasonably expected of me to meet my job requirements. The last 12 months have been glorious and I feel fully engaged and satisfied in the workplace.
If you consider yourself a workaholic, please don’t take offence at the following opinion piece. Recognize that your actions may be having an effect (similar to that of kryptonite on Superman) on employee engagement, employee satisfaction, and the overall morale of your organization.
For some reason, we tend to celebrate the idea of the workaholic. Some people share their stories about weekends spent at the office, or pulling all-nighters, as if they were an achievement. Some organizations even reward this kind of behaviour. These stories become legend as if they were cover stories in the Metropolis Daily Planet newspaper. I’ve heard on many occasions, “You should work more like Lois. She works 24/7 and she is really dedicated to the cause.” Unfortunately, working more doesn’t mean you get more done, it just means you work more.
A common side effect of workaholism is what I call the quasi-Superman syndrome. Quasi-Superman syndrome is when good people chase problems with the sole purpose of being a hero. They may even create a crisis (sometimes unconsciously) to get praised as a hero for solving it. This desire for hero recognition is so strong that they may not even look for more efficient ways of solving problems (like using root cause analysis and process improvement tools for example). Creative/strategic problem-solving takes a back seat to brute force problem-solving. Quasi-Supermen and Superwomen are running around the office with their capes on, saving the day in an attempt to seem important.
The real problem is that this behaviour can be like kryptonite on overall employee engagement, satisfaction, and morale. A work environment driven by workaholics can spin into a vicious cycle of guilt, resentment, conflict, poor morale, and low engagement (refer to figure 1). People who leave at 5pm feel inadequate for only working a “regular” 8-hour day. The guilt makes other people stay late out of obligation regardless of need and independent of productivity. This creates some Superman vs. Lex Luthor type resentment and can escalate to conflict. This then effects morale and breeds more of the desire to be a workaholic, which starts the cycle all over again.
Vicious Cycle of Workaholism
Figure 1
In order to increase satisfaction, engagement, and morale levels we must expose the myth of the workaholic. They aren’t heroes. They are not faster than a speeding bullet, in fact they tend to have lower levels of job performance (at least relative to the time devoted to work) than non-workaholic employees (i). They simply spend too much time on inconsequential details rather than moving on to the next important task. They are not more powerful than a locomotive, in fact they tend to feel anxious and upset when they aren't working, and have higher levels of stress and more health complaints than other employees (ii). They are not able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, in fact most of the time they have difficulty delegating or sharing tasks with team members more suited for the job (iii). They should not be rewarded for this behaviour.
The real hero is home enjoying life because they have figured out a way to get the work done in good time.
If you feel you are a workaholic, or know someone who is, here is a five-step program to help:
1. Admit that you are a workaholic.
2. Recognize that cooperation and teamwork can give you strength.
3. Examine the past and how you can improve.
4. Channel your energy into tasks that link with the strategic direction of your organization.
5. Help others that suffer from the same workaholic behaviour to break the vicious cycle.
My colleague Clark Kent completed these five steps 12 months ago, and the levels of morale, engagement, and satisfaction have gone up, up, and away!
So what do you think? Is Adam correct with his thoughts on workaholics and how they should be recuperated back into civilized society?
Your thoughts please?
Best regards
Robin
Dr Robin Mann, Commercial Director and Part-Owner, BPIR.com Limited,
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