TM - June 2008 - (Page 16) [foundations] by Kate DCamp I I Why Anecdotes Always Win t can be frustrating to HR professionals to see executive leadership’s opinions shaped by anecdotal data, and not just because one of the biggest risks of relying on anecdotes is insular thinking. We hear anecdotes from the people we spend our time with. For executives, this interaction This phenomenon holds true beis dominated by time with their yond corporate life. The stories direct staff. The anecdotes that that make the news are hardly make their way through layers representative of what is going on of management to the top often in real life, but people watch and are not even factually correct by read them because they are comthe time they pass through several people. Beyond that, the lesson that could be derived from a little glimpse of truth Executive management likely has been contorted, or at the very need the actual data least, filtered through on issues, such as how the belief systems of its communications several people who have heard and then are understood, how retold the story. Yet committed employees these stories beare and what customers come the understood “truth” in the organiare telling frontline zation, and it seems employees. no amount of data to the contrary can change the impressions they create. Why does this matter? Data is the key to making effective decisions about virtually everything HR touches. Knowing what motivates employees, what they want and expect and how they feel about the company sets the priorities for HR’s talent management efforts. Beyond HR, executive management needs the actual data on issues, such as how its communications are understood, how committed employees are and what customers are telling frontline employees. One of HR’s most important duties is to make sure executive management hears the truth over the anJune 2008 ecdotes. Employee surveys, focus groups and simply capturing the data from the many conversations HR staff and managers have with employees can help provide more systemic data, but somehow data often is less compelling than a good story. grams such as stock options and high-leverage bonuses. For senior management, this point of view is counterintuitive because it can afford the risk and still live comfortably. You could make up a hard luck story, but all you really have to do is go talk to some of the employees who participated in the survey. Their true stories will be better than anything you could invent. I did this and quickly found someone who could not buy a house big enough for his family. The bank was not impressed by the prospect of a bonus. It wanted to see income that could be counted on to satisfy the mortgage. This individual had five children, and he and his wife were living in a threebedroom home. Even another $500 a month of reliable income would have qualified him for a four- or five-bedroom home in the same community, but his target bonus of $10,000 a year would not. About the Author Kate DCamp is the senior executive adviser at Cisco. She can be reached at editor@talentmgt.com. pelling. Even reality television is not real in any sense of the word. If it were, there likely would be no audience. So the real challenge is not just to get the data that will have the most talent management value, but to illustrate the truth with compelling stories that bring it to life. How do you take dry, potentially boring data and make it into a compelling story? Start with your conclusion, and work backward to a story that leads the listener to that conclusion. Assume surveys tell you employees don’t value high-risk, high-reward pro- When we reported the data from the survey to senior management, we led with this story and several others and then showed how the data bore out the anecdote. I listened to the “ah-has” as people who had not thought about affording a mortgage in many years got the point. And when we proposed enhancing the 401(k) and putting more money into base salaries, the recommendations quickly were accepted. 16 talent management magazine www.talentmgt.com http://www.talentmgt.com
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of TM - June 2008 TM - June 2008 Editor’s Letter Contents Human Performance Leading Edge Foundations The New Components of Compliance Candid Culture: Embracing Employee Complaints Transitioning to a New Era: C&B at Nonprofits Three Ways to Build Successful Manager-Employee Relationships Implementing Successful Learning Programs The Succession Fix Fifth Third Bank: Putting People First Zaxby’s: Making Employees’ Jobs as Palatable as Its Menu Workforce Readiness: Preparing Personnel to Meet Business Goals Kelley Blue Book: Writing the Book on Performance Management Advertisers’ Index Editorial Resources Full Potential TM - June 2008 TM - June 2008 - (Page Intro) TM - June 2008 - TM - June 2008 (Page Cover1) TM - June 2008 - TM - June 2008 (Page Cover2) TM - June 2008 - TM - June 2008 (Page 3) TM - June 2008 - Editor’s Letter (Page 4) TM - June 2008 - Editor’s Letter (Page 5) TM - June 2008 - Editor’s Letter (Page 6) TM - June 2008 - Editor’s Letter (Page 7) TM - June 2008 - Editor’s Letter (Page 8) TM - June 2008 - Contents (Page 9) TM - June 2008 - Contents (Page 10) TM - June 2008 - Contents (Page 11) TM - June 2008 - Human Performance (Page 12) TM - June 2008 - Human Performance (Page 13) TM - June 2008 - Leading Edge (Page 14) TM - June 2008 - Leading Edge (Page 15) TM - June 2008 - Foundations (Page 16) TM - June 2008 - Foundations (Page 17) TM - June 2008 - The New Components of Compliance (Page 18) TM - June 2008 - The New Components of Compliance (Page 19) TM - June 2008 - The New Components of Compliance (Page 20) TM - June 2008 - The New Components of Compliance (Page 21) TM - June 2008 - The New Components of Compliance (Page 22) TM - June 2008 - The New Components of Compliance (Page 23) TM - June 2008 - Candid Culture: Embracing Employee Complaints (Page 24) TM - June 2008 - Candid Culture: Embracing Employee Complaints (Page 25) TM - June 2008 - Candid Culture: Embracing Employee Complaints (Page 26) TM - June 2008 - Candid Culture: Embracing Employee Complaints (Page 27) TM - June 2008 - Candid Culture: Embracing Employee Complaints (Page 28) TM - June 2008 - Candid Culture: Embracing Employee Complaints (Page 29) TM - June 2008 - Transitioning to a New Era: C&B at Nonprofits (Page 30) TM - June 2008 - Transitioning to a New Era: C&B at Nonprofits (Page 31) TM - June 2008 - Transitioning to a New Era: C&B at Nonprofits (Page 32) TM - June 2008 - Transitioning to a New Era: C&B at Nonprofits (Page 33) TM - June 2008 - Transitioning to a New Era: C&B at Nonprofits (Page 34) TM - June 2008 - Transitioning to a New Era: C&B at Nonprofits (Page 35) TM - June 2008 - Three Ways to Build Successful Manager-Employee Relationships (Page 36) TM - June 2008 - Three Ways to Build Successful Manager-Employee Relationships (Page 37) TM - June 2008 - Three Ways to Build Successful Manager-Employee Relationships (Page 38) TM - June 2008 - Three Ways to Build Successful Manager-Employee Relationships (Page 39) TM - June 2008 - Implementing Successful Learning Programs (Page 40) TM - June 2008 - Implementing Successful Learning Programs (Page 41) TM - June 2008 - The Succession Fix (Page 42) TM - June 2008 - The Succession Fix (Page 43) TM - June 2008 - The Succession Fix (Page 44) TM - June 2008 - The Succession Fix (Page 45) TM - June 2008 - The Succession Fix (Page 46) TM - June 2008 - The Succession Fix (Page 47) TM - June 2008 - The Succession Fix (Page 48) TM - June 2008 - The Succession Fix (Page 49) TM - June 2008 - Fifth Third Bank: Putting People First (Page 50) TM - June 2008 - Fifth Third Bank: Putting People First (Page 51) TM - June 2008 - Zaxby’s: Making Employees’ Jobs as Palatable as Its Menu (Page 52) TM - June 2008 - Zaxby’s: Making Employees’ Jobs as Palatable as Its Menu (Page 53) TM - June 2008 - Zaxby’s: Making Employees’ Jobs as Palatable as Its Menu (Page 54) TM - June 2008 - Zaxby’s: Making Employees’ Jobs as Palatable as Its Menu (Page 55) TM - June 2008 - Workforce Readiness: Preparing Personnel to Meet Business Goals (Page 56) TM - June 2008 - Workforce Readiness: Preparing Personnel to Meet Business Goals (Page 57) TM - June 2008 - Workforce Readiness: Preparing Personnel to Meet Business Goals (Page 58) TM - June 2008 - Workforce Readiness: Preparing Personnel to Meet Business Goals (Page 59) TM - June 2008 - Kelley Blue Book: Writing the Book on Performance Management (Page 60) TM - June 2008 - Kelley Blue Book: Writing the Book on Performance Management (Page 61) TM - June 2008 - Kelley Blue Book: Writing the Book on Performance Management (Page 62) TM - June 2008 - Kelley Blue Book: Writing the Book on Performance Management (Page 63) TM - June 2008 - Kelley Blue Book: Writing the Book on Performance Management (Page 64) TM - June 2008 - Editorial Resources (Page 65) TM - June 2008 - Full Potential (Page 66) TM - June 2008 - Full Potential (Page Cover3) TM - June 2008 - Full Potential (Page Cover4)
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