Since we launched Blissbook, we’ve done a lot of talking with customers about the content that goes into one. We classify this information into three categories: culture, onboarding / general information, and case-specific. Although no Blissbook is the same, they will all contain one or more of these types of information.
Culture
Bubble Hockey ≠ Culture
Defining company culture is hard. Is it chemistry? Fun things people like to do together? How employees or customers are treated? It could be all of those things, but we agree with Rand Fishkin in that company culture can be boiled down to the following:
What you believe in and why your company exists (your mission and guiding principles).
Who you collectively are deep down inside (your core values).
Whether or not you respect these things (how you hire, reward and release people).
These are not shallow questions and they require deep thought. There should also be collaboration with all employees within a company so that everyone is bought in and the culture reflects everyone’s belief of what the company is, not just leadership’s view of it.
Don’t call it a comeback, at least not for Millennials in the workplace. In many regards, this generation isn’t a rehash of their parents and grandparents. They have a completely different set of values for the workplace, one that uniquely fuses their personal interests. Consider it more of a takeover, if you will—one that’s been catapulted by technology and cultural advances. Not an “Empire of the Ants” kind of takeover, but one based solely on the numbers. If you don’t believe the times have changed, visit a class of college freshmen and ask them to tell you the first thing that enters their mind when you say the word “catfish”. Yep, Millennials are different.
Back in 2008, Gen Y Expert Amy Lynch predicted that by 2014, 36 percent of the U.S. workforce would be comprised of Millennials and by 2020, nearly half (46 percent) of all U.S. workers would be from this generation. By comparison, Gen X only represents 16 percent of the current workforce.
So, the question for CEOs and HR directors is how to attract and engage this generation in the workplace. This is particularly true of small to mid-size companies competing with larger, more established companies for top talent.
When approaching Millenials, remember, this is the generation who, instead of gathering around the water cooler in the morning to discuss current events, is more likely to post a video of their morning visit to the local coffee shop to create their own current event. This is the generation where 23 year-old Jake is likely to dump 22-year old Sara via Facebook while she in turn boldly responds on Twitter: I was dumped for Brittany the Skank #jakewetsthebed #ihatehim.
Patrick Lencioni writes “fables” to illustrate business principles. For someone who loves nothing more than losing themselves in a good novel, the plot of The Three Signs of a Miserable Job may seem a little stilted. But we’re not reading a novel here, we’re looking for guidance in our careers, so let’s look past that. In truth the use of the fable mechanism creates a context that helps us relate Lencioni’s teachings to our own experiences.
The gist of the book is this: there are three key elements of satisfaction in any job, and as a manager you have the power and the responsibility to change them all for the better.
Anonymity
People are more than just their jobs. When a manager recognizes that and connects with employees on a personal level, it’s the first step in building a team rather than a staff.
Irrelevance
Everyone wants to have an impact, but in many jobs it’s hard to see exactly what that impact is. A manager is responsible for showing each employee why their work is important and how they make a difference in people’s lives.
Immeasurement
Most people want to do a good job, but in order to do so there needs to be some sort of measurement of what exactly a “e;good job”e; is. By defining objective criteria over which the employee actually has control, the manager provides a framework for success.
The book is written from the lens of how a leader can improve staff morale, but I think there are some important lessons for regular old employees too. For me, the book helped to articulate what I was never able to about what I found dissatisfying in my work. There were a few “exactly!!” moments, and a few “well, duh” moments, and I came away with a sense of what I might be able to improve in my current position and some specifics to look for when considering future positions.
My one complaint: nobody needs to learn how to make a job miserable – the book is really about what makes a job truly rewarding. Why can’t we just say that?
Art by Zen Pencils, advice by Bill Watterson. The advice hits home for us here at Blissbook. We are trying to make the world a better place to work by helping people find meaning and purpose at their current job. Or, if they can’t do that, find a new company whose values and beliefs match their own. Just because you don’t find fulfillment at your current company doesn’t mean you can’t find it anywhere!
And if that proves impossible, well, you should listen to Bill.
“If everyone had the luxury to pursue a life of exactly what they love, we would all be ranked as visionary and brilliant. … If you got to spend every day of your life doing what you love, you can’t help but be the best in the world at that. And you get to smile every day for doing so. And you’ll be working at it almost to the exclusion of personal hygiene, and your friends are knocking on your door, saying, “Don’t you need a vacation?!,” and you don’t even know what the word “vacation” means because what you’re doing is what you want to do and a vacation from that is anything but a vacation — that’s the state of mind of somebody who’s doing what others might call visionary and brilliant.”
We wrote a guest article on Zen Payroll’s blog about the new Employee Handbooks that companies are putting out these days, how they differ from the handbooks of old, and when companies should think about getting either one of them.
Here’s how the article starts…
Traditionally, employee handbooks have been snooze-inducing legal documents crafted or at least reviewed by a lawyer with the goal of protecting an employer from lawsuits and fines. But the definition of an employee handbook is expanding. Recently, companies have begun usingemployeehandbooks in a different way: to define and publish their company culture for employees and recruits alike. These culture handbooks set the tone for interactions throughout a company and paint a picture of what new employees can expect upon joining. So when do handbooks matter to you, and which kind should you have? Depending on your company’s size, you may have one, both, or none.
