Being Accountweetable

I know, I know; “Accountweetable” is a bit cutesy. However the art of being “accountweetable” may not be as silly as it sounds.

I define being “accountweetable” as “being accountable for your social media postings; not only for the things you say, but also to whom you say them."

More and more, we see our community leaders – be they thought, organizational or political leaders – joining the ranks of those utilizing social media outlets such as Twitter to amplify their visions of a better world.

With this new form and ever-emergent leadership practice, even the highest profile leaders may not see that their presence in such social spaces extends their leadership responsibilities – in ways they may not be prepared for.

One of our team members here at Global Learning is an avid tweeter on their own time, and uses the space not to build a brand, but to actually be social.

Recently, they experienced an interesting occurrence that solidified my understanding of the importance in remaining accountable – or accountweetable – if you are a public leader engaging in social media.

To spare the long details of a short story:

While walking their dog, our self-tweeting staffer came across a community safety concern. Without thinking twice, they tweeted their local representative about the issue, thinking it to be a conveniently casual way to let the representative and their office know what was happening within their district. This representative is also quite active on Twitter and they had actually exchanged positive tweets with our staff member regarding another subject in the past. Through a social media platform, the representative is clearly listening and responding when they feel appropriate.

Our team member didn’t fully expect a response. While not the most proactive act of leadership from the representative, a lack of response in this situation could easily be overlooked.

Here’s where this situation goes awry and is blatant proof that there are more people listening than you think.

Instead of getting a response from the representative, our team member was shockingly inundated with discriminatory tweets from a group of local cyber-bully tweeters, who apparently disagree with our staffer’s safety concerns. In each of these discriminatory messages, the representative’s handle - @<insertnamehere> - was also included.

Our staffer chose not to respond, as many of us in the social media arena have learned never to engage with bullies. But sadly the vile minutiae continued throughout the day and into the evening, with a sporadic classless quip or two thrown in during the middle of the night.

Upon checking their email in the morning, not only was there no response from the representative, but they had also been ‘unfollowed’ by the representative.

Coming into work and filling us all in, our staffer expressed an existent malaise regarding the situation. For some reason they were having a hard time letting go of the fact that the representative never reached out and “unfollowed” them.

Although not quite sure as to what the representative might say, they felt as though they had just been bullied in a schoolyard while the teacher just stood there and then walked away.

So I ask: Does this social media behaviour represent accountable leadership?

Our staffer is a tax-paying, community-driven, social changer with a pleasant disposition. They represent any number of team members in a wide variety of situations. They are the exact type of person that any leader would want on their side and helping to promote their leadership goals. Yet here they are left feeling abandoned to some extent.

Knowing this person well, I can safely say, they will not be sitting at home at night, crying because they have been “unfollowed” by a local politician. Which isn’t to say that they’re actually aren’t people out there who would have a more emotional reaction to such a situation. In fact, it’s the existence of these people and their use of social media for connectivity that we must consider most when engaging in social media as a leader.

 
 Bottom line: If you are going to put yourself out there, stamp yourself with the word “leader”, and offer an open line of communication, then you must think thoroughly. And you must be “accountweetable”.

If you are going to be there, then be there.

 “Responsibility's like a string we can only see the middle of.  Both ends are out of sight.” ~William McFee, Casuals of the Sea, 1916

Simple Trust

A few weeks back I was with a friend while we waited for her husband to finish up work. As we were standing outside the office building we suddenly heard,

“Hi there! “

In turning around, a gentleman I would guess to be in his late forties, early fifties confidently and warmly approached us. His pleasant and familiar disposition first led me to believe he was one of her husband’s co-workers; instead, she introduced him to me as her husband’s boss.

After a few rounds of “Isn’t this weather amazing?”, he asked my friend some questions that I was impressed with:

1. How is your dog, Pickles?
2. Is Tommy excited to graduate?
3. How is your mother feeling?

She gladly offered up answers to each of his questions. (Pickles needs steps to get on the bed, Tommy is excited but nervous and mom is finally doing much better)

Then with a “it was really nice to see you” and an “it was pleasure meeting you” directed to me, he was on his way. Before he dashed off, he turned back and offered “if there is anything I can do to help make things easier for you – in regards to your mother – just let me know.”

Now, were his questions simple? Absolutely.  Does the fact that he literally went out of his way to engage us mean that he is ready to lead us all to world peace? Hey, you never know…

But what his very simple, but impactful questions do represent is the conscious extension of trust and comfort. 

They represent him as a leader who is making an effort to care; he not only listens, he retains.

These actions tell us that he has, to some degree, a personal understanding of inclusion, and that he is able to think outside of himself.

What is most admirable is that my friend’s husband is a relatively new hire to the company, and that she had actually only met his boss twice before, and rather briefly.      

I strongly encourage you to follow his example.   

Create your own personal, fundamental inclusion philosophies.    

Take the time to incorporate the concepts of diversity and inclusion in your personal everyday experiences. When we make ourselves sincerely available to one another, it creates a welcoming atmosphere. Any sharp leader will tell you that a welcoming atmosphere is the doorway to team innovation.    

Each and every day, inside and outside of the workplace, I encourage you to examine your own interactions. Are you going out of your way to make someone feel welcome? Are you really listening when you are casually conversing?   

When a leader makes it clear that they are present and accountable to their team and their team’s work-life, it reflects positively on the leader as a person as well as on the organization that chose them to lead. 

Bottom Line: When we as people feel we are truly heard, our trust is usually gained and solidified. As leaders, we can demonstrate our true leadership abilities by helping the people around us to feel included and valued.    

Diversity and inclusion initiatives don’t always have to be strategic in nature, they just have to be sincere. 

“For it is mutual trust, even more than mutual interest, that holds human associations together.” -   H. L. Mencken

-     

Global Learning is Proud to Announce the Launch of Our Latest Mobile App, Diversity Now

100% free to the public, Diversity Now ^TM is an automatic and manual aggregation tool which curates high-quality, digital content from thought-leaders dedicated to diversity, human resources, and leadership. The app is currently available on the App Store and Google Play, with a version for BlackBerry’s App World scheduled for release in the coming month.

“With sharing capabilities built directly into the app, Diversity Now ^TM is a fantastic tool for social media professionals and practitioners constantly on the hunt for "just-in-time" diversity content“ says Michael Mastroddi, VP Social Media for Global Learning. In less than one year, Global Learning gained over 6,500 ‘natural’ followers, fans, and friends across our diverse social media accounts. By ‘natural’, I mean actual legitimate social media accounts; all spam followers are removed, and we don’t stand by the practice of purchasing followers.”

This fast-growing following was gained through Global Learning’s daily dedication to seeking out and amplifying the latest thought-leading current events, blogs, videos, podcasts, studies, and press releases – all dedicated to global diversity, human resources, and leadership. Global Learning averages an approximate minimum of 2,500 re-tweets, shares and +1’s of their social media content every 90 days.

“It became clear to us over this last year,” says Mastroddi, “that there is an active, intelligent audience continuously seeking this content.”

Wanting to bring the same curation they offer via social media to a wider audience, Global Learning set out to find a mobile app specifically dedicated to gathering diversity content from multiple sources. There were ample amounts of apps promoting singular voices; however, no such app existed that gathered all of this content into one place, and that was purely dedicated to diversity, human resources, and leadership.

Out of over 600,000+ apps currently available to mobile device users, Diversity Now ^TM is the only app on the market that is dedicated solely to the aggregation of diversity, human resources, and leadership content from multiple high-quality sources, and curates them in one place. 

Diversity Now ^TM features the content from such thought leading organizations as the Human Rights Campaign, SHRM WeKnowNext, the Maytree Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union, Difference at Work, the Glass Hammer, and many more.

“While the information being provided is insightful and incredibly useful, what is truly astounding are the personalized connections that we have made through social media,” says CEO and Founder of Global Learning, Elaine Newman. “I believe to understand diversity is to understand the “power of possibilities”. We wanted to create this app not only as a tool to connect users with this great information, but also as a way to connect them with the brilliant change-agents creating this information. The more people and places we can direct our users to, the more possibilities there will be in creating actual change. I work with brands every day that are spending thousands of dollars on diversity initiatives that are receiving minimal recognition and impact with their customers.”

“We see Diversity Now ^TM as the perfect opportunity to help broaden the diversity brand message of thought-leader or thought-leading organizations. Change doesn’t work in a vacuum; you have to tell people what you are doing. Diversity Now ^TM has the capability to do so, and do so instantly.”

If you are interested in having your organization listed as an official sponsor or endorser of Diversity Now ^TM, please contact Elaine Newman for more information.

 More about the Global Learning Group of Companies

Founded in 1996 and led by CEO Elaine Newman, the Global Learning Group of Companies offers strategic consulting and training solutions to employers striving for success in today’s diverse business environment. They are known internationally for their widely used, innovative e-Learning tool, Diversity Moments ^TM.

Working with public and private organizations, Global Learning identifies, assesses, and resolves organizational issues, specifically in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Global Learning has built a strong reputation from knowing how to partner and collaborate with organizations, helping them achieve individualized success.

Contact: Elaine Newman, CEO

Phone: (416) 488-0175 Email: enewman@egloballearning.com Twitter: @eGlobalLearning

www.egloballearning.com

 

First Contact

While Global Learning will be first in line to lend a helping hand gaining equal rights for our intergalactic neighbors when that time comes, I'd like to focus on a different sort of "first contact" till that happens.

Understanding the power of first impressions is paramount in any number of crucial situations, from the first-time meeting with your soon to be in-laws to being on either side of a job interview process. With whom and how we choose to represent ourselves from first engagement can make or break a career or business before it's even off the ground.

Now, I have heard the argument (and actually agree) that “what others think of us is none of our business.” Here is a spot on article we recently aggregated and posted saying as much:

“What You Think of Me Is None of My Business” by Georgia Feiste

This is so true and relevant to our own personal mental health goals.

However, when it comes to business and creating your own organizational culture, I'd like to suggest the concept of caring what others think within a first contact situation is not about the individual; it's about properly representing a unified vision of organizational success that you as a business leader have created for your diverse staff.

In recent weeks I have encountered a spectrum of examples that have really resonated with me. If you have read my other blogs, you have caught on by now that I love my "real-time" examples:

• I recently accompanied a friend to the hospital in an emergency situation. There are times when a person can simply smell the trouble in the air: a pervasive waft of confusion that coincides with a pulse of anxiety. I made my way to what seemed to be a check-in point. There was a gentleman there behind the glass partition who I'd guess was in his late-forties to mid-fifties. Before I could get the words "Hi, how are you today?" out, I was abruptly interrupted with:

"The forms are over there, fill it out, put it in the box and we'll call you.”

I responded "O.k. Great, thanks!" and proceeded to the forms. I hadn't made it two feet when I hear the gentleman utter to a nurse standing with him:

"I wish people would just read the sign.That's why it's there; so you don't bother me."

It was one of those moments as an HR professional that I had to choose to either engage or walk away. For the sake of my friend’s well-being, I chose to not respond and continued on my path to the forms. I chuckled to myself as I thought "Thank goodness I have my own pen.” 

Have no fear I wrote a lovely note to the Director of HR of the hospital. I might also add that the rest of the hospital staff was stellar and my friend is feeling much better. This gentleman is the wrong choice of staff for first contact. 

• Straight from the files: Years ago my advice was sought in a case where an office IT trainer was found to be using racist humour in his training. The company realized there was a problem when they started using this trainer for introductory training of new hires. They saw a spike in the number of people that didn't return after the first day had increased by almost 25%. Had the company invested the time in creating a clear outline for the trainer and not just assumed that their choice would do a good job, they would have saved countless hours and resources seeking new employees.    

•  My favourite example: I recently found myself in a pool store. No, I do not own a pool. The moment I walked in, I was greeted by a young woman, who very calmly approached and asked if I needed help finding anything. I was there with a given mission, so I told her what I needed. She directed me to exactly what I needed and then proceeded to describe to me the differences between the choices I had, without once trying to influence my decision. I ordered what I needed, she quickly instructed a fellow worker to package up my order. By the time I was done paying, I was thanked with a smile and then told to go out to my car where an attendant would be waiting with my order to help place it in my vehicle.  Now That Was Service!  What I absolutely adored about the entire experience was that every visible staff member was young. Now I don't know anything about their other staff as this isn't a store I frequently visit. So I hope the rest of their staff is multi-generational. But it was so refreshing to see a young, friendly group with a strong work ethic. I sincerely believed they cared.

Your staff should consist of individuals with a variety of personal histories that provide knowledge stemming from cultural, education and social backgrounds. It's imperative to have a team that is diverse, however it's up to you as a leader to unify their goal under your guidance.

Everything starts with a beginning and “a first impression”. Choose how you are represented and who is representing you, with pride and care.

“Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success. “

~ Henry Ford

Defending Your Offending: Avoiding Fender Benders

Hard to believe I know, but yes, all of us at one time or another can be offensive. Unfortunately, offending one another is just part of human nature: intentional or unintentional; for any number of reasons, in a variety of ways. Regardless of the reasons, all of us have the capacity to offend anyone at any time without even knowing it.

We should, of course, take the time and care to do our best to avoid these situations; but we should also be prepared to deal with them as they arrive. There is a direct line between how we deal with the aftermath of offending one another and business effectiveness.

As a leader, if we offend one of our team members, we must understand the impact behind all of the decisions made in the process of handling the situation. Your goal as a leader should be to dissipate the situation, but to do so in a manner so that the fix is permanent and all parties involved leave feeling respectfully heard.

Be sure to not question your accuser’s feelings. You may question their reasoning, but their emotions are their own.

My suggestion is to always choose empathy. You very well may not have meant to hurt anyone. However, if you take responsibility for leaving someone feeling ill-at-ease and you wish to do anything you can to mend the situation, it displays that you clearly care for the mental health of your team. Additionally, you show that you honour their word and that you wish to be held accountable for your actions.

When we know we have done everything with positive intentions and someone still steps forward as being offended by our words or actions, instinct might pull us to become defensive. When we are told we are being offensive, it may seem that our honour is being questioned. If we become overly defensive, however, it could open the gates for more possibilities to offend those around us. Identifying our own personal defensiveness can be key to dismantling conflict, before it mutates into an even greater problem.

Here are three common yet negative examples of responses often given to employees who speak out when they feel offended by their leader:

No one else has said anything.

I have sadly heard this time and time again from employers handling employee grievance issues.  That this one employee was the only person that spoke up, so they feel it shouldn’t really account for much.   By doing this you are isolating your employee, who by feeling offended has already felt isolated by you as a leader. And there is no dictionary that would define ‘offensive’ with the caveat “only if more than one person says so.” One of the many things that diversity has taught us is that we all experience the same things in many different ways. Certain occurrences mean more to some than others. By insinuating that the offensive situation is just in the one employee’s mind, the employer may cause psychological damage and could create a paranoid work environment for an employee who potentially didn’t feel that way to begin with.   

I’m sorry that you feel offended.

You might as well finish that sentence up with “but I still don’t think I did anything wrong.”

By saying that you are sorry that the person feels offended does not take responsibility for your words or actions. It only offers the employee a sense of pity, and suggests that you believe their negative feelings are a personal problem. Even though you have uttered the word “sorry”, this does not constitute an apology for offending the other person.

Other people complimented me.

That may be, but one woman’s trash is another man’s treasure, and vice versa. You have to honour the person telling you that what you have said has offended them, just as much as you are willing to readily honour those who complimented you. Reacting this way comes across as if you are operating with blinders that deflect all negative perspectives, even if they have validity.

Our teams are made up of individuals. We must treat them as such and nothing less. Yes, we are in business to make money. We need people, both as team members and consumers in order to make that happen. Money is certainly a numbers game, and the number of people we engage with most definitely plays into the amount of money we make.

But at the end of the day, the individuals that work for and with us on a daily basis are not numbers; they are people. They are dignified human beings who signed onto your leadership journey in order to help sustain their livelihood. That decision deserves to be treated with nothing but respect and care by you as a leader at every turn.

How would I recommend responding when an employee tells you that you have offended them?:

“I’m very sorry that I or anything I have said has offended you. What can I do to make the situation better for you?”

“Few people can see genius in someone who has offended them.”

 -Robertson Davies

   

You Live. You Learn.

About a year and a half ago, I was introduced to a fascinating young man named Michael, who I ended up hiring to do some very niche creative work for Global Learning. He would say he was fortunate that I was able to understand the value in his diverse experience; however, his innovative work for Global Learning would prove that good fortune was also mine.  

Michael is one of those people that, when you meet, you just know there is something different about them. He is the type of person that embraces the world from his own angle, all the while staying eager to understanding the views of others. A great sign of an involved team player and potential leader.

When he was younger, Michael’s uniqueness led him to pursue a career as an actor. He has elite training from prestigious, historic institutions, and a performance resume which boldly represents that education.  

When he wasn’t performing, he could be found taking on any number of other theater-related responsibilities: everything from directing, to teaching, to casting. He even spent some time working as part of the casting team for a list of Broadway productions and feature films.

He had worked in the professional entertainment industry from the time he was 11, until about the time he was 27, when unforeseeable circumstances caught his life off guard. His priorities had to change, and he now felt obligated to seek out what others would deem as “conventional work”.

Until we crossed paths, by his own retelling, he wasn’t having the easiest of time getting his foot in the door, even for interviews. He says that many employers he would speak with just didn’t quite understand him, and they would be dismissive because of his alternative experience. He felt they didn’t understand the responsibilities involved with the theatrical positions he was listing on his resume.      

When I first met Michael and took a look at his resume, I would say he only had one or two traditional working positions that, on paper, could correlate to the business world. But because of similar backgrounds he and I shared, and the fact that I took the time to really listen to his story, I was able to read the language his resume was speaking.

Ballet is where my passion led me for many years before joining the corporate ranks. I know firsthand the vigor, passion, willpower, stamina, loyalty, and dedication it takes to survive in the professional performing arts. Performance artists have a real understanding of knowing what their responsibility is, within the greater organizational picture. Another sign of an involved team player and potential leader.

I knew that Michael had the potential to be one of Global Learning’s superstar employees.

I asked him why he thought employers or recruiters may not see him for his true worth, and I found his response to be very interesting.

“For the generations before me, like my parents and grandparents, options were limited and obligations concrete. I think because of this sense of containment they were raised in, they sought to teach my generation that our options were boundless, and we had an obligation to follow our passion, whatever the cost.”

He explained how he has come across countless people from his generation who found a passion when they were younger, spent a large portion of time and dedication to developing their skills regarding that passion, and – due to life’s uncertainty – have found themselves with noteworthy achievements, yet limited traditional business experience.

Imaginative, innovative and passionate people with powerful unique skills are available to employers, and the pool is large. These potential employees are being abruptly ignored because, at first glance, those skill sets don’t readily align with traditional best business practices.  

Michael handled his Global Learning responsibilities so exceptionally; he was quickly being sought by other companies to do similar work. Instead of taking the best offer, he harnessed his skill that he had developed here at Global Learning, and then created his own company, devoted to his now-developed expertise. This gave him the opportunity to take on the offers he received from potential employers, and turned them into potential clients. Fortunately for me, Global Learning is one of his primary accounts. With the launch of his own endeavors, at the age of 31 he is now thriving, confidant, self-reliant, and trusting of his own acquired wisdom.

Leaders and employers must keep their eyes wide open and their ears perked for people like Michael. We have the skilled workers we have been looking for right in front of us and their skills are rather incredible. Perhaps they just need to be refined to your organization’s needs.

“Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique. In all the years that have passed, there has never been another child like you. Your legs, your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move. You may become a Shakespeare, a Michelangelo, a Beethoven. You have the capacity for anything.”

- Henry David Thoreau

 

The HR Times, They Are a Changin'

I am all for policies being in place for handling sensitive workplace situations, but we mustn't forget sometimes those policies need reviewing.

Recently, I was approached for advice regarding a workplace situation of a departmental employee of a very large organization. This department is comprised of a director, several managers and roughly 130 employees.

When speaking with the employee, capping off a variety of what I actually believed to be sincere leadership concerns, the last straw came when the employee felt they had been verbally disrespected by their director.

The employee, with strong supporting evidence, also alleges that the director through various actions encourages resentment towards employees who may need to take time off due to their disabilities. This is despite the fact that employees have the contractual right to take personal time at their discretion, and that personal time is afforded to all employees, with or without disabilities.

The work ethic of the employee has been consistently noted as stellar in both supervisor and client reviews. Specifically noted were the employees effeciency skills. This employee clearly is not out to waste anyones time, so they opted to take the route the organization offers to handle such circumstances and filed a grievance against the director.

Allow me to give you a quick run-down of how this particular grievance process works:

1.   Employee files grievance with 1 of the managers.

2.   The manager then confers with the other managers and director to decide if they find the grievance valid. They have 2 weeks to come to this decision.

3.    If the grievance is found invalid, the employee can appeal, which precipitates a meeting with the manager, director, a union representative and an HR representative. The director and HR representative will decide if the grievance is still deemed invalid. The director has two weeks to schedule this meeting, and has the opportunity to ask for an extension.

4.    If found invalid again, the employee can appeal a final time where they must bring the issue before a designated impartial tribunal. It may take over a year for the tribunal to be assembled.

     

     

      This process, while more than a bit convoluted, very well may have been created with the best of intentions.

Despite the evidence which I found valid, the grievance was dismissed by the managers and director after the first and second stages in the process. Which, considering the director is the superior in question, wasn't much of a shock.  When the accused is making the final call, I can't say I am confident that decision is made without prejudice. However, the employee can file and has filed an appeal.

Based on the policies in place, the outcome of the first two stages will be determined by the offender.

When this was questioned, the employee was told that the only way to reach the tribunal stage was to go through the first stages of the policy process.

So, just to be clear, because the policy must be followed to the letter and there are no exceptions allowed, the abused must:

·         Directly accuse their abuser, twice.

·         Attempt to convince the abuser that they are indeed abusive in their leadership tactics, twice.

·         All so that they can finally approach the issue with a non-partial panel, which may take up to a year to put in place.

What stands out to me the most is the lack of concern for the employees mental health throughout this entire situation.

We have a sincere, exemplary employee who has to re-live an uncomfortable workplace situation several times, only to be told by the director involved each time that their feelings are unreasonable. And to add insult to injury, the employee must work for another year under a director they feel they can prove is discriminatory.

Let's even give the director the benefit of the doubt and assume for a second the employee’s feelings, while sincere may be misguided - although, I don't believe that to be the case:

It’s the fact that there is even the existence of an active policy that would prolong any amount of mental anguish for an employee that truly startles me.

Workplace discrimination claims are on the rise. It's a pristine indicator that workers are dutifully becoming aware of their right to a mentally and emotionally stable and safe work environment. Hopefully this is leading employers to the understanding that it is their responsibility to establish and ensure that workplace exists for everyone involved, without exception.

Most organizations have conflict/resolution policies in place, but with an increasing awareness of the effects of positive and negative mental health in the workplace, we must question the effectiveness of these policies.

I'll say it again: I am all for policies being in place for handling sensitive workplace situations, but we mustn't forget that those policies require review, revision and most importantly, at all times, enforcement.

`` Twice and thrice over, as they say, good is it to repeat and review what is good."
- Plato