In my career, I’ve seen disruption of many kinds. We are currently seeing it on a huge scale in HR. But it is all too easy to look in the rear view mirror and accept the inevitable. Successes look as though they were meant to happen. Consider Amazon, Netflix, Facebook and Uber. Can you imagine your life without them?

If you can’t then you’re looking in the rearview mirror.

Predicting Change

These companies have come along and disrupted their industries to such an extent that they’ve become integral to our way of life. Yet we did live without them. When we were happily going about our business without them, how many people could genuinely have seen ahead, and predicted that these would be the specific ways these industries could be changed?

The answer: precious few. Which is why the people who started them are billionaires. And deservedly so, in my view.

 The frog

Put a frog in a pan of cold water, and turn up the heat. It will gradually go to sleep as the water warms up, lulled into a false sense of comfort and security.

When the water reaches 40%, it will simply die, without realising its fate.

And there is the rub. If we go to sleep, happy and content in our market niche, we too might boil to death as digital disruption comes to our industry.

Your organisation

Think about how well prepared your organisation is for digital disruption – that you haven’t even heard of yet.

The key is to do less of the things on the left, and more of the things on the right. Think about the organisation you are working in right now – where are YOUR vulnerabilities?

What can you improve or change? How can you get buy-in from organisation leadership?

Be T Shaped

The final piece of the puzzle is making yourself as an individual equipped for change and digital disruption.  How T Shaped are you?

Working in an Agile team puts huge demands on everyone. Luckily, there’s no excuse for not being T- Shaped. Whatever your discipline, work to acquire a working knowledge so that you can collaborate across silos. This will spark innovation and enable a progressive organisational culture.

One silo that still exists in organisations is HR. Bust it open with the new breed of HR software such as ������Ƶ, which enables people to work together seamlessly.

The post How to Avoid Digital Disruption: The Rearview Mirror Won’t Tell You Anything appeared first on ������Ƶ.

You’ve probably heard the advice for creating stunning presentations. “Tell them what you are going to tell them. Tell them. Then tell them what you’ve told them”

Sounds trite. But there is much that we all need to heed in this.

Communicating the key messages about your company is probably the most important job you’ve got as a leader. But sadly, the truth is that no-one is constantly listening to their managers or bosses at work. People have so much to absorb that its easy to tune out, or rely on their colleagues to tell them what’s going on.

So if you are to be effective,  you’ll need to up your game. Communicating effectively is a skill – just like anything else. You are not expected to know it simply because you’ve been given a leadership role.

1. Don’t expect anyone to remember what you said the first time.

You will need to repeat yourself until you are bored of the sound of your own voice. You will need to say things over and over again, in multiple different ways. Don’t give up, don’t think that you’ve really nailed your message after one or two meetings.

2. You need to use the channels that the listener prefers. Not always your preferred channels.

Some people love to talk, some hate it. Some will pick up new information rapidly, some take time to digest. You’ll need to provide ways that everyone can absorb the message. Just because you prefer sending emails, doesn’t necessarily mean your employees will read them. I’ve lost count of the times when people have asked me to explain emails I’ve sent them – over the phone – that I thought were truly simple!

3. People learn in different ways.

Psychologists have identified several different ways that people prefer to learn new things. For some its listening, others reading, for others its via social groups or activities. You’ll need to ensure you’ve provided tools for all your people. So, if you are communicating a change in your company, make sure you engage with people via team meetings, written briefings, emails, company noticeboards, and get out and about while people are socialising to spread the word.

4. Be kind and considerate.

We don’t always talk about kindness at work. But its critical. Especially when people are feeling vulnerable and you’re communicating a lot of change in your messages, for example.

People don’t leave their emotions or feelings at the office door. Being considerate is one of the most powerful things you can do. We talked to a friend recently who is leaving a very well paid job at a large organisation simply because in the year she has worked there, her manager never once said good morning to her when she arrived for work, and ignored the greeting she gave him. How simply this could have been avoided!

5. You are communicating constantly through what you DO as well as what you SAY.

In the workplace, people notice everything you do – yes, absolutely everything.  Your body language and actions communicate volumes. Think people don’t notice when you don’t live out your own values, or the company’s values? Think you can get away with not attending social events you expect your employees to do? Or taking your turn at essential office chores? Think again! What the leader does is the thing that everyone will do. I once worked at a company where my manager (the CEO) cleaned the toilets and took out the rubbish every day. He never had to ask for help – people pitched in automatically.

6. Be honest in your communication

People don’t expect you to know the answer to everything or to be always right. They are adults, and don’t expect you to be God. Its OK (good, in fact) to admit you have messed up, or don’t know the answer. What is bad, is to pretend to know, lie, or retreat into a hole when you don’t know what to do. There is nothing worse than an information vacuum while leaders are figuring out what to say. People will write their own stories – not necessarily what you want them to hear.

7. Communicate the WIIFM

People don’t listen to everything you say or understand what you are telling them. What? You’ve told them 5 times? And they still don’t get it? What’s wrong with these people? There is nothing wrong with them, but there is something wrong with your communication. You have not followed the number one rule – people need to know “WIIFM” (“what’s in it for me”). If they don’t hear or see this, they switch off, no matter how much noise you make.

8. People aren’t telling you the truth.

People don’t always tell you how they really feel, no matter how friendly you are with them or how long you have worked with them. We have talked to countless CEOs who tell me that all their people are very happy working at their company. How do they know? They “asked” them. Now, just think for a moment. You are a junior employee, and your boss or boss’s boss says, “do you enjoy working here?” Hmm….great to be asked, but are you really going to reveal that you think your co-workers are lazy, you are fed up that you did not get asked to contribute to the new project, or that you think you deserved the promotion not your colleague? And just before she stopped by your desk you were updating your LinkedIn profile? I wonder.

To allow your people to communicate effectively with you, make sure you allow them the freedom to express themselves without judgement.

If you like this post, you can read more of our best ideas for people management on our .

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1. What do you need it to do?

There are lots of platforms on the market. Assess what your need is. Do you need to manage holidays and sickness better? Would you like requesting and approving days off to be streamlined? Is a central employee records database a priority? Are you tired of the admin involved in onboarding new employees? These needs are well served by a platform offering core HR features.

2. How will the software provider demonstrate it adds value?

Ask the software company for testimonials and evidence from businesses like yours. Did they save time and money? Would they recommend the platform?

3. How easy is it to set up?

Simple set up is essential. Without it, your employees won’t take the time out of their busy day to use the system. Ask the software company for a demonstration so you can assess how much time it takes. What support do they provide? Make sure that the support will be there when you need it, to onboard your employees seamlessly.

4. Will your employees actually use it?

How well designed is the software? Is it intuitive, well laid out, simple and beautiful? Does it look like software that employees use outside of work like their phones or Facebook? if it does, they will use it. If its clunky, like most B2B systems, they probably won’t bother, and will go back to workarounds rendering your investment wasted.

5. Is it fully mobile?

No-one these days is always in an office at a desktop. The new breed of HR software is fully optimized for mobile for both you and your employees. They expect to be able to do their business on the go on phones and tablets. Your HR software should work the way you work too.

6. Is your data safe, private and secure?

Make sure the software company has a good security and privacy policy and that your employees’ details will be secure. Check that the company won’t sell your data on. A cloud based platform should be run on a reputable infrastructure like Google Cloud infrastructure. This means you have the peace of mind that the software is taking advantage of the Google security model built on over 15 years of experience.

7. Is it flexible enough to grow with your business?

There’s no point limiting your growth with software that won’t scale. Look for a platform that offers the flexibility to grow with you – making anything possible. You don’t know what the future will hold and what your business needs will be. Your HR software must be ready for your expansion.

8. Does it integrate with existing software, needs or business processes?

Make sure your software can handle payroll, expenses, slack integration and other important business tasks. Your HR software should be flexible enough so that you can add or remove (and only pay for) the features you actually need, when you need them.

We’ve carefully designed ������Ƶ to be the best HR platform for small and medium sized businesses.

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But, the cost of sickness takes a toll on your business. According to the  the average worker is absent from work for 6.5 days a year. This figure varies from one workplace to another but the cost to the UK economy is £16 billion annually. It’s not surprising that some businesses struggle to know where to start managing this issue.

Fortunately, there is lots you can do to help your employees stay well, and create a workplace they will fall in love with.

Practical steps to avoid excessive sickness absence

1. Monitoring sickness absence. Get your data in good shape so that you know where likely problems and absences are likely to crop up. Find out more about sickness absence monitoring procedures.
2. Policies. Review your disciplinary procedures (download a free policy template here) and ensure you have made it clear to employees what the consequences of excessive sickness absence are. Frequent communication, consistent application of a fair policy such as ������Ƶ’s free short term and long term sickness absence policies, and an expectation that return to work interviews will always be carried out is vital. The last thing you want is managers in one team letting things slide while the neighbouring department is run with more rigour.
3. Flexible working. Allowing a degree of flexibility in normal working hours is another strategy that can help. Click here for more information about flexible working including a free flexible working/working from home policy template) If employees know they can take a day off at short notice to deal with family, childcare or other caring responsibilities, the need for them to call in sick for non-genuine reasons is mitigated. Its give and take – building flexibility in as far as reasonably possible will pay dividends in terms of asking people to work extra hours from time to time if a key project is looming.
4. Tracking absence patterns and looking for “hotspots”. You’ll need a good tool to keep track of people’s absence and see any patterns. Early action is essential and can head off problems down the track. ������Ƶ includes free holiday and absence tracking, a company calendar, and a real time HR dashboard that’s ideal for busy managers.
5. Consider other ways of rewarding good attendance. Sometimes organisations use incentive payments, time banking systems, buying and selling leave. Find out more about incentives and rewards that actually work to increase employee engagement here.
6. Understand what you can do to support wellbeing and mental health, the hidden epidemic affecting one in six UK workers.

Find more great ideas on our blog on  driving  up employee engagement and creating a happy workplace. Engaged employees who love coming to work don’t take sick leave!

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Luckily as business, leadership and management book addicts, (and we confess, some of us have created books like these in our past), we have an encyclopaedic knowledge of the bookshelves.

We’ve done the work for you

We’d like to share our secrets of the ones that have lasting value, the ones we have kept in their dead tree form on our bookshelves, because we still go back and flick through them from time to time.

This is quite a personal and eclectic list, which perhaps includes some titles you won’t find listed in the usual run-downs. We would love to hear your thoughts! Do you have a favourite that isn’t on this list? Please leave a comment or get in touch.

Eleven Rings by Phil Jackson

The legendary NBA coach shares his secrets of building successful basketball teams from diverse, often raw young talent. This isn’t a classic business or management book but its deeply insightful on how people tick. For the most successful sports coach of all time, Phil is profoundly humble. The revelations he shares of personal and team challenges are relevant to any business environment and leadership challenge. The section about leaving behind one chapter of his life and moving on to a new challenge is incredibly moving. Phil is a person of great intelligence and this book is about seeking meaning in work and in life. Ultimately, that is the point for all of us.

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni

This book is written in the form of a fable, making it an easy and engaging read. Lencioni tells of a woman who takes over as CEO of a struggling Silicon Valley firm.  Her team are demonstrating the classic signs of dysfunction, including absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability and inattention to results. No matter where you are in your leadership journey, you will definitely have encountered the personality types outlined here, and the book details specifics on how to successfully build them into a harmonious and high performing unit.

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Steven Covey

We loved this book so much that we used it to train over 50 new managers. Its the most effective approach we know of to organising life. Its self-evident that in order to be happy, we need to decide what we want to achieve, then have the tools to do it. Life is difficult, complicated, messy and unpredictable. Without focussing our efforts, we can drift and waste our precious time on this earth. This book will help you develop the mind set and techniques that will become unconscious habits in time. The human species is designed to need challenge and stress in order to feel mastery, from overcoming difficulties we derive satisfaction and happiness. This book will help you achieve way more than you thought you ever could. Almost every day, we remind ourselves to “start with the end in mind”.

Influence: The Power of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini

At some point in life you realise that in order to be successful everything is about influencing. Amazingly, all of us think that we are immune to the power of advertising. Its incredible that we would think this when highly successful businesses spend billions of dollars trying to get a share of our wallets. Sadly, all of us are wired in the same way, and are influenced in broadly similar ways. (If you still aren’t convinced, just read the chapter about social proof) If you want to know the secrets of getting people to do the things you want them to do, this book is essential. It breaks down influencing techniques into categories and explains how to become skilful in all of them.

Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg

Possibly the most controversial book on the list but we are putting it out there…we love it and have given it to our daughters and our sons.  If like us you hate those books with pink covers and titles like “Bad Girl Bosses” that are targeted at “women leaders” you will find Sandberg’s book refreshing. She is open and honest about the challenges of being a woman in a senior role. She doesn’t pretend that it’s easy, nor does she profess to have all the answers. She also doesn’t fall into the “act like a man” or “whatever you do, don’t act like a man” advice trap. After all, life is much more nuanced than that, thank goodness. Women are not men, and women do face different challenges. Life isn’t ideal, the world isn’t fully equal, and it doesn’t help to pretend that it is. This book is for men and women leaders, who are living in a world that is made of up of people who are leaders, some of whom happen to be women.

Getting Things Done by David Allen

This book has been around for a while but its become more relevant as our lives become more complex. Distraction beckons at every turn in the modern workplace, and so called productivity tools can hinder rather than help. This book offers a framework for approaching chunks of time and work. If followed, it can be applied to any project, challenge, both in and out of the workplace. Although it may appear deceptively simple and based on common sense, like the most powerful techniques, it can cut through complexity. Give this book to your new recruits who struggle with time management.

Predictable Revenue by by Aaron Ross and Marylou Tyler

This is the bible of B2B and enterprise selling from one of the brains behind the exponential growth of Salesforce.com itself. It contains powerful nuggets of wisdom and provides a structure and a framework for selling anything in the age of LinkedIn, email marketing and social media. Essential reading for any business needing to build a sales pipeline at scale either at go to market or in a growth phase.

Power by Jeffrey Pfeffer

Think that power is something you only get when you have already made it? Think again. You can create and take your own power, which will enable you to do all kinds of stuff you didn’t think you could. This book will show you how. There are many books that purport to do this, but this book actually works. We have tried it and got results! Pfeffer writes with a warm and engaging tone and this is a fun read with some serious takeaways. Its the book that has helped more than any other book with the challenges we face being bold and confident in new situations where we honestly are not sure what we are doing but need to look as though we do.

First Break All the Rules by Marcus Buckingham

This book is the defining work on strengths based leadership. The basic concept is simple, figure out what people are good at and build on that, instead of trying to “fix” their “weaknesses”. This book will redefine how you manage people and drive high performance. When you’ve read it, use the follow up book “Now discover your strengths” to understand the strengths of you and your team.

The Hard Thing about Hard Things by Ben Horowitz

What we love about this book is it doesn’t sugar coat the awful truth that real entrepreneurs know. Starting a business is really, really hard. It is painful, expensive, risky, terrifying, lonely and humbling. While much is written about “following your dream” and the like, there isn’t much about the reality of when things don’t go to plan. We love this book for the anecdotes and stories of the early days of Horowitz’s enterprises often with fellow tech guru Marc Andreessen. Sometimes Horowitz can come across as believing his own hype, but mostly, this is real advice from the trenches when he faced the inevitable “WFIO” moment.

The Lean StartUp

More than any book, this has defined the process of entrepreneuring in today’s economy. It is heavily focussed on technology, but the mindset is applicable to all businesses. It reminds us that most new businesses fail. But most of those failures are preventable, and the lean approach can help start ups adapt and adjust before its too late. Thinking Lean is about learning what your customers really want, testing, not making assumptions and investing in expensive product development before going to market. Its enabling more and more businesses to get into the market quickly, and it gives you the tools to use lean strategy techniques yourself.

The One Minute Manager

This book is a quick and easy read, but its simplicity belies its effectiveness. Its actually based on the latest findings in neuroscience and how the brain works, and recent research has re-validated this. People need and crave continuous feedback and recognition. Now that businesses all over the world are revamping their performance management systems to focus more on in the moment and continuous feedback, with outstanding results, this book is more relevant than ever.

Steve Jobs: The Exclusive Biography by Walter Isaacson

We chose only one biography and this is it. Isaacson distills this almost mythic figure into a human being. A little like the Horowitz book, this is perhaps exposing some uncomfortable truths about the reality of a personality like Jobs. Many have read this book and protested that Jobs comes across as a jerk. And argued that you can be nice and also successful. But most of us will recognise at least some of these characteristics in the most creative – and successful people we know. If you are interested in the early evolution of the technology and the industry that has revolutionised our lives for the better, this is essential reading.

Thundercloud – Managing Reward in a Digital Age by Daniel Hibbert

This is a new addition to the list and we believe it will become a classic. In the war for talent that is consuming growth organisations today, organisations are scrambling to understand the secrets of motivation and engagement. If they don’t, their most valuable assets will rapidly walk out of the door. Thundercloud uncovers the neuroscience behind motivation and engagement. As leaders, most of us have have got it all wrong. Hibbert goes back to our evolutionary roots as a species to explain how we are hard wired to behave in the face of threats and potential rewards. We fear threat and loss of something we had or thought we stood to gain, more than getting a reward itself. Removing fear and creating a culture of psychological safety will enable you to build a high performing and highly engaged workforce. We think this is the best we’ve seen on this topic in over 25 years in business.

Independent People by Halldor Laxness

We are certain that you will never have seen this book on a list of business reading before. And it is by no means an easy read, nor is it about business. Its a saga of an Icelandic sheep farmer, overcoming brutal poverty, deprivation and harsh conditions of the landscape he lives in. Why do we recommend it? Described as being like “poetry with muddy boots on” this book is above all else a tale of the human spirit and a search for freedom. The hero of the book Bjartur prizes his independence above all else, and will go to startling lengths to preserve it. He is the very embodiment of an entrepreneur, who has to make sacrifices and suffer losses to live. Sometimes it is good to remind ourselves of how our desire to start a business and build something is rooted in an instinct that goes . Its also a wonderful read full of rich imagery of Iceland’s stunning beautiful landscape.

Find more of our curated ideas for great resources to help you develop as a leader. They’re based on our own experience and have helped us build businesses and develop others. Prefer videos? Check out our list of the best TED talks we’ve found.

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Did you know that by some estimates, one in six UK employees suffer from stress, anxiety or depression? Even if you only run a small business, you aren’t immune. With a payroll of less than 20 staff, this could mean two or three of your people.

And that ultimately takes its toll on your bottom line. Across the UK, 9.9 million working days were lost in 2014/2015, costing businesses more than £17 billion.

Unfortunately, this problem is on the rise, and often, business leaders aren’t equipped to deal with it.

How can you help?

Is it really your business if your employee is suffering stress because of what’s going in her life outside of work? Or what can you do, realistically, in today’s busy workplace, to ease the pressure of meeting deadlines and targets; and are these contributing to the stress itself?

And this assumes that you are even aware of the problem. Many employees still fear the taboo of discussing their mental health, especially with their boss.

Its good to keep talking

It’s very important that you do address this issue. Naturally, if you care about your employees, you would be talking to them regularly and making short-term adjustments to deal with stressful life events that might affect their work.

But what if the problem is more serious than that? In the worst case scenario, failing to address a mental health problem could land you in front of an employment tribunal under disability discrimination legislation.

Address the root causes

The number one cause of workplace stress is insecurity and a lack of control. Uncertainty over job status, constant change, lack of resources and poor management are all key triggers too. Invest in good communication and management practices to tackle the problem at its root. Ensure you and other managers are not micromanaging, and work to tackle bullying and harassment.

How you know there might be a problem

Keep an eye out for the common symptoms of stress. These include:

• Taking more time off than usual
• Greater use of substances such as alcohol, tobacco and drugs (prescription and illegal). (Download a free drug and alcohol policy template here)
• Increased irritability, poor concentration, reduced productivity
• Deteriorating personal or work relationships, including bullying behaviours
• Becoming more ‘emotional’, moody or over-reactive to what others say
• Starting to behave differently that’s out of the norm
• Changing of eating and sleep patterns
• Physical reactions such as sweating, palpitations and increased blood pressure
• Feeling negative, depressed and anxious most of the time
• Feeling trapped or frustrated … and believing there’s no solution

The most noticeable effect can be a change in performance.

As a leader, make it normal to have conversations about mental health. Talk openly about your own experiences of mental health, if you can. Chances are you or someone you know someone who has suffered, and you can talk about what helped the recovery. You will set a powerful norm.

Practical steps:

• Set up mentoring and buddy schemes
• Have regular performance feedback sessions, talking openly about what is going on inside and outside of work.
• Encourage senior leaders and respected colleagues to speak out about their own mental health battles
• Educate the team, using resources available from any major mental health charity. These are free and up to date. Often, representatives will visit the workplace to train managers on how to deal with stress.
• Invest in employee wellbeing and health initiatives. Consider having a lunch time yoga class or meditation session. Introduce financial planning education into the workplace.
• Introduce flexible working. Change your mindset from how long your employees sit in the office to what they deliver. Within reason, it doesn’t matter where they do this!

Employee wellbeing

Ask yourself, do your staff have anyone to talk to about their mental health?

If not, consider investing in an employee benefits program that helps employees with wellbeing, physical and financial health, as well as saving them money on household expenses and treats.

Looking after your employees both inside and outside of work really does pay dividends creating a productive workforce.

Read more of our best ideas on how to create a productive, engaged workforce on our blog.

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With decades of experience starting and growing businesses between us we know the challenges companies face when it comes to HR and managing people. Especially on a small business budget and when there aren’t enough hours in the day!

We wanted people who worked for us to be happy, motivated, and productive. We wanted to create a fantastic company culture.

Creating a business our employees love to work in

We learned, sometimes painfully, that if people aren’t happy at work, they will take their talents to the competition. But when we invested time, effort and money into the company culture, people loved it, stayed with us, and told their friends about us. Happy people equals business success. It’s that simple.

As lovers of technology we looked around to find simple solutions for HR and company culture building that worked for us and we couldn’t find anything.  ������Ƶ was born to solve this problem.

Simple, beautiful, intuitive

We make it simple to take care of HR with everything you need to manage your people at a cost you can afford.

We help you on your leadership journey, we are with you every step of the way. We’ll make it easy for you to take advantage of the best ideas and techniques for people management. Resources that are usually out of reach unless you’re a large corporate, with rafts of highly paid consultants!

Tackling Britain’s epidemic of bad management

Britain today faces an epidemic of bad management and unhappy workers. Only 30% of people are happy at work. That means 70% of people are not working as hard as they could be.

We strongly believe that it should be an employee’s right to have a great experience at work. They spend huge amounts of time there, and should not have to suffer the soul destroying experience of bad workplaces.

������Ƶ democratises the best of HR – for all companies

Luckily, technology today brings incredible power to the hands of each and every business owner and entrepreneur. You can create the workplace culture you’ve dreamed of, even if you’re not Google and aren’t in California. HR doesn’t have to be scary or tedious. Be compliant, up to date and organized – the simple way. And reap the rewards of happy, productive people in a business you can be proud of.

Read more of our best ideas for creating a company your employees will fall in love with here.

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Maybe this is uncomfortable reading if you are a manager and one of your valuable employees has quit!

Perhaps this is a wake up call if you are learning to manage. Even if you have been managing for decades, it can be devastating when someone quits. Management isn’t easy. Its really, really hard to do it right.

There’s an epidemic of disengagement in the UK workforce today

In the workplace today, there is significant evidence that workers aren’t engaged with their organisations. This means they aren’t working as hard as they could be. Which makes somewhat depressing reading, especially for those of us paying the salary bills!

There is compelling evidence from  who found that bad management will cost us £84 billion in 2016. What this looks like in practise is up to half of all workers looking to change job. Not because of their pay, as this is largely keeping pace with inflation now, but because of their bad boss.

Why are we looking at disengagement on this scale? The critical factor is the relationship between the employee and their manager. In a small business, this could be the business founder or owner and their team. In a large company, it could be the team leader or department head.

Often, the root cause is simply the failure to develop management as a skill.

Bad management is everywhere

Bad management seems endemic in the UK. Even the government acknowledges that as a nation we lag behind other developed countries. All too often, people who are good at what they do are put in charge of a team of people, not because they have any skill in managing people but simply because they have been there the longest, have the best level of technical expertise or are friends with the boss. We’ve seen this in large numbers of organisations and it doesn’t end well. Its a sure fire route to poor engagement, a toxic culture and low productivity.

Performance management

One of the classic traps poor managers fall into is doing little or no performance management, or, doing it very badly. Don’t fall into this trap – find out more about good performance management here.

How can you avoid being a bad manager, and more importantly, as you grow your business, how can you ensure that you develop the management skills of those who’re managing their own teams?

The basic elements of good management

A good start is to look the key things employees say they want from their boss:

• Managers who show care, interest and concern for their staff
• To know what is expected of them
• A role which fits their abilities
• Positive feedback and recognition regularly for work well done.

How well you are doing on these?

To find out how well you are doing, consider these questions too:

• Do I demonstrate care, concern and interest?
• Am I clear in talking through what’s expected of my staff?
• Are people working to their strengths? Do I provide support where staff are stretched? Am I proactive in this?
• How often do I provide positive feedback and encouragement? It’s far too easy to notice the negative and feedback on this.
• Am I creating the conditions where people want to work with me?
• Am I investing in developing the skills and talents of our people, to enable them to progress and develop?

If you find you need help in some areas of management, and most of us will at some point in our careers, fortunately there are tools that can support your journey. ������Ƶ has a suite of useful features to help you align your team’s objectives, provide feedback, and create clear goals and objectives.

Ultimately, remember, that talented employees may join your business for the opportunities and the rewards. But if they aren’t well managed, there is a risk they will leave. Don’t take that risk.

Read more about employee motivation here and developing your leadership skill set here.

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Its tempting these days when Facebook and other social media channels are the ubiquitous ways we communicate to include your employees in all the doings of your daily life. And this might be great for team spirit, and injecting fun into the workplace. After all, few employers now think its possible or even desirable to prevent employees going on Facebook during working hours, within reason. (To help you navigate this, a free email and internet usage policy is available here)

It’s often said as well, that the youngest generation in the workforce, the so-called “millennials” expect Facebook to be part of their working as well as social life.

The downsides of social media in the workplace

But before you reach for that “add friend” icon, pause to consider what would happen if you need to discipline or fire an employee?

You might get on really well in the office, and spend time together outside of work, having drinks, lunches and socializing. But if you are managing a team, chances are at some point you will have to discipline someone and in the worst case scenario, terminate their employment. How would you feel if after sharing every detail of your lives, you have to have that difficult conversation on a Monday morning in the office?

We’ve often seen managers who are very close or even friends with their employees struggle to manage them professionally. After all, if a manager happens to know a lot about an employee’s personal situation, it’s so easy to come up with all sorts of mitigating excuses for poor performance at work. While we are not suggesting that a manager should not be sympathetic to an employee’s home life, there is a balance to be struck. It can also be incredibly unfair, not to mention potentially illegal, to other employees who are not “friends” with you, if you are treating them more stringently than your Facebook friends.

Alternative ways to bond the team

There are other options to support a team that likes to work hard and have fun. For example ������Ƶ’s beautiful team directory and company calendar allows all your team to find out a bit more about each other and keep track of birthdays, anniversaries and other important company dates.

What’s next after Facebook?

Bear in mind too that Facebook, like any other technology may wane in popularity. Other channels are already evolving, and will continue in future. Right now we are seeing the emergence of an “unconnected” generation coming to the workplace, who spurn social media altogether in favour of simply hanging out together. Your Facebook group may be a small, or declining segment of your overall workforce.

Social media for team building

Assuming you think you can navigate successfully through this minefield, what are the arguments FOR friending your team? We’ve listened to strong proponents of this approach, who say it helps to build team cohesion and enables people to bring their whole selves to the office. And this undoubtedly works very well in some workplaces with an open culture. Employees can easily build relationships in the team if they know just a little about someone from their Facebook updates. And its easy to reach out to employees to update them about company team building or social events, or even, urgent messages such as office closures due to bad weather for example.

Keeping it private

Interestingly enough, at a recent workshop on this very topic, we took a straw poll of a group of younger workers which revealed subtly different attitudes. In some ways, this generation are much more traditional than the media sometimes allows. In fact, there is a trend towards keeping life away from work separate.  As Tara, 22, who works in a large bank told me, “I don’t want my managers seeing me let my hair down on a Saturday night. And I certainly don’t want them seeing me as anything other than a professional. I fear they may judge me on things that are nothing to do with how I perform in my job”. And Helena, 23 added, “I may friend my peers or people at the same level as me, or who I know in my team. But I would never friend people more senior or junior to me. I just don’t want to bring my personal life to work in that way. If I am having a tough time outside of work, it’s a relief to come to work where everyone expects you to be business like. I don’t want misplaced sympathy or emotion getting in the way of me focusing on my job”.

Maybe the generations aren’t so different after all

It looks as though there isn’t that much difference between generations in the workplace.  In fact, attitudes to this are influenced more by your company culture than the age of the people. We know of plenty of 23 year olds who never go on Facebook and by contrast, many over 60s who are avid users!

Whatever approach you have to Facebook, and other social media trends, remember that your employees are bound by the same rules of confidentiality and privacy and these should be clearly outlined in your contract of employment, employee handbook, and internet and email policy. Find a library of free HR policy templates here.

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