Polly Pearson's Blog

Engagement and Inspiration - Insights from a New Book. See My Favorites.

David Zinger is always good for inspiration (and a chuckle).  Check out his new (free) collaborative ebook from the Employee Engagement Network titled, "Small Engagements."  It is filled with 70 ideas you can implement today, and/or notions that might inspire how you operate every day.

 

My favorites from the e-book?

#6 by Sandy Wilkie:

Create an organisational seed-fund that individuals/teams can access with bids for money to support the set-up & implementation of improvement ideas & innovation. Engagement through harnessing ideas and creativity within the organisation.

#12 by Michael Lee Stallard:

Be present to connect in conversations – It’s been said that attention is oxygen for relationships. When meeting with people, get in the habit of being present by staying focused on them and giving them your full attention. Don’t check your smart phone, don’t look at your watch, don’t look around the room or let your mind wander. 

#13 by Terrance Seamon:

Simply listen.

#16 by Kendra Marks:

Smile and have fun! Find time to add a bit of humor into someone else’s day and your own. It relieves stress and energizes yourself and those around you.

#19 Les Landes

Apply the lessons from the landmark research done by Ken Kovach at George Mason University. He asked thousands of workers in different organizations what the main drivers were for their discretionary effort (i.e. going the extra mile). The top three things employees identified were interesting work, appreciation of work done, and being in on information - which cost the company very little.

#21 by Anthony Shearn:

Ask "If you knew you would get the support and the resources you need, what do you think is the very best thing you personally could do for the business right now?"

#28 by Carl a Donato Jr.:

Power of one - engage one associate per day and watch them pay it forward.

#46 by Steve Brown:

Today, make it a point to ask three members of your team for their advice on an issue of significance. Start with a very simple, "I need your help with something..." and then listen intently, take notes, clarify what you heard and thank them for their thoughts. Close the loop by acting on their input in some way, large or small.

#52 by John Hallonquist:

With new team members or new teams, start a conversation or one-on-one meeting with, "how do you know when you are having a good day?"

#57 by Cord Himelstern:

Make it personal. Take the time to listen and understand what inspires your employees.

#59 by Jennifer O'Halloran:

Let others in, engagement breeds engagement.

#76 by David Zinger:

Just add spice.I start my day off with a small Spice Girl’s number by asking myself and others, "so tell me what you want, what you really really want. I’ll tell you what I want, what I really really want..."

 

 

------------ Talk Back ---------------

What is your favorite from the book?

I like to view this work through a 21st Century lens.  One that reflects

• An often global and physically dispersed workforce.
• The end of "listen or read-only" broadcasting: All communication is a two-way street.
• The move away from command and control, where everything must be managed by a manager -- to a collaborative knowledge workforce quite capable of coming up with brilliant ideas and putting the ideas into action. The leader's role is often to get that ball focused, and rolling.

Cheers.  

PS: I am not a cat person. I don't have anything against cat people. Just had to come clean. The book was good enough, in my dog-centric opinion, to overlook the cover art!

 

-- Polly Pearson
@PollyPearson

 

 

 

 

"Talk, Inc.": A Book Review. Organizational Communication for the New Era.

When a writer representing the Harvard Business School contacted me some time ago requesting an interview for a book he was writing, I got a little excited. He was looking at how companies communicate with employees today, suspecting there was a better way -- suspecting the old school norms just didn't engage talent and power the business like it should.  Hallelujah!

Introducing Talk, Inc., the resulting book just released by Harvard Business Press.  It is an excellent tool for anyone wondering how to crack code when it comes to strategy engagement, cross-organizational communication, workplace culture, and igniting passion to power an organization. 

Written by Professor Boris Groysberg of Harvard Business School, and Michael Slind of Fast Company editorial fame, the book features stories and case studies gathered through interviews with hundreds of practioners, communication experts, employees, and company executives. The book includes company case studies, tips, and practioners on the leading edge. It covers how these new practices work, and what they have done for the business. In short, it makes the case, and inspires the reader. It shows how easy it can be for any company to upgrade their approach to organizational communication, and start the journey to increasing the returns they get in the marketplace from a workforce who is "in it to win it" just as much as you are.

 

What I love about this Book

1. It has practices that could help organizations, regardless of where they are on the journey from old-school to cutting-edge.
2. It answers the "so what" question and makes the subject relevant to the C-suite -- as Harvard Business School does best.
3. It furthers the conversation on this subject, thereby helping to improve the work lives of employees, and the brand power of companies globally. 

 

Key Themes

The book updates the phrase "organizational communication" to "organizational conversation." That means everything that impacts the flow information across and around the company.  A conversation is a two-way exchange. Just like a good handshake -- it needs to be equally weighted. This basic premise of a two-way exchange is the key to the new era of powering organizations from within. (In my writing, I've discussed this as moving from the "command and control model" toward one that is more "collaborative and connected.")

To shed more light on the concept of "organizational conversation," the book is identifies 4 elements that make this happen well.

1. Intimacy.
   The concept of feeling in "close proximity," regardless of geographic or hierarchical location. A closeness of spirit.
2. Interactivity.
   This is where talking "with," rather than talking "at" is the norm.
3. Inclusion.
   This means full-fledged participation -- think "employee generated content."  Social media is a great lever.
4. Intentionality.
   Here, we make the C-suite connection. This isn't about candy and balloons to make people feel good, it is about business strategy and furthering the goals of the company. This section shows how to make sure the threads align with the marketplace and desired business results.

The book brings each of these points to life via four major case studies -- Hindustan Petroleum Corp. (Intimacy), Cisco Systems (Interactivity),EMC (Inclusion), and Kingfisher PLC (Intentionality). Each section is followed by a TIPS chapter, helping state the business case and practical elements of deployment.

Care to hear from one of the authors of the book? Here is a radio interview with Michael Slind and me on Voice America.

-------------- TALK BACK -------------

 

I'd love to hear your reaction to the book. Please consider giving it a read, and giving it to your top executive in charge. I really do believe this conversation can help make "work" a better place for all.

 

 

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@PollyPearson

 

Sustainability Risk: Are Women Leaving the Workplace a Canary in the Coal Mine?

I hosted a most unusual gathering of my A+ professional women friends recently. I call them A+ because they are all lovely people, hugely accomplished, and together, we comprise a local arm of a global sisterhood of women in a 'by-invitation-only' type of club. It should be noted that among the decision criteria for club membership, is that you would be happy to be stuck in an airport with this person, or to be a roommate with her in a hotel. Net: no divas.

What did I find unusual about this gathering?

Half of the women had left their jobs. The moves had one element in common: company values.

Company Values?

Yup, the women felt they had reached a breaking point where they didn't want to work for organizations and senior executives who acted like jerks, or who operated in a value-deficient manner inside the organization. Each of the organizations they left, by the way, is a household name.

What else did these women have in common? They are all executives in their 40s, and when they left their employer, they did not bother to line up another job. Apparently, the option of leaving, into an uncertain world, was better than staying where they were -- working for organizations who "did not get them" or "get it" when it came to how to behave.

What Gives?

At first, I thought this blog post would be about what companies should do to retain women like this. (Answer: To not only have company values, but to live them. A dusty binder on a bookshelf, or a slide in a recruiting presentation is not enough. The C-suite needs to care, and show they care in their actions and words.)

But then the bigger picture appeared. Could these departing women as executive employees merely be the canary in the coal mine? Could these departures also signal future purchasing departures from women who only want to spend dollars with companies and organizations who don't act like jerks?

Something to think about. Add Millennials and even a portion of the 99%ers to the "women with values population" and this could signal a sea change to come.

Has Change Already Begun?

I found myself instinctively acting in what I guess we can call "a post-canary" way recently. A dear friend is a business owner who had to deal with a law suit when the guy he put in charge acted in an unethical manner. It wasn't the first time this friend of mine had to pick up the pieces when his general managers (all men) acted poorly. My advice to him, "For goodness sake, hire a woman to run the place." Oddly enough, he just hired a woman in her 40's.

We need the guys. Don't get me wrong. Perhaps we just need more executives role modeling, for men and women alike, behavior fit for sustainable business success.

See today's WSJ for an article on an example of values-lacking behavior. The business action here was understandable, it was HOW it was handled that caused all the damaging ripples to date. (Thanks Penny Peters for the call out to the article.)

 

--------- Talk Back ------------

Are you seeing this?

I recall a Harvard Business Review feature some time ago that pointed to why women in their 40s were leaving. Then, the headline for me was that the pull and priority from family exceeded that of the workplace. While that is likely still a factor for many women in their 40's, it should be noted that for this particular group at my dinner party, none of them left because a family pull or priority.

 

Polly Pearson
@PollyPearson
http://www.pollypearson.com

 

 

 

Why Allow Social Media at Work?

Just last night I was chatting over friendly cocktails with a group of amazingly intelligent women when I realized one of the women was looking at me like I had two heads.  Her contribution to the conversation went like this, "I am a very private person. I realize some day I'll have to understand this social media space, but ..."

The day for people and organizations to start understanding this space, if they haven't made the move yet, may well be today.

Today is Social Media Day, as declared by many cities, and enthusiastically cheered on by many professionals who believe in its power and impact. An example: my former company, EMC, made public today a new animated video they put together for employees to help convey what social media is, and illustrate how to participate for the benefit of the company. Brilliant.

Those who participate in social media for business today liken social media to the Internet in the mid- to late-1990s.  The web back then, simply became where the marketplace wanted to get their information, and buy their goods.

Following the famous adoption curve, I'd make a stab that if 1992-1998 represented the bulk of the early adopters and early majority of conducting business on the web (where their business was able to be found on the web, as well as in the yellow pages), that 2007-2013 represents the bulk of the early adopters and early majority of conducting business via social media (where companies are having a presence, sharing information, and building two-way relationships with the marketplace using social technology). Again, just a stab -- but the trajectory is indisputable in my book.

 

So What?

 

The big "so what" here is that the train has left the building and is moving fast to the "also ran" side of the bell curve.  In a tough and fast moving information economy, there may be less room for "also rans."

 

Why Allow Social Media at Work?

Some Risks to Ignoring (ROI) observations.  

• If you don't, you risk becoming out of step and irrelevant with the marketplace over the next 5 years.  You might as well speak fluent Latin.  
• If you don't, you risk an inability to get the best talent.  That's right. The external market expects to be able to use every resource available to help them get their job done today.  For the savvy talent, that includes making contact with resources, and collecting real-time content via LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, SlideShare, and more. If this talent arrives at your company and finds you don't trust them to use these tools responsibly, they will leave you as soon as they can.
• If you don't, you risk your competitors beating you to where the fish are now swimming.

Why Allow Social Media at Work?  

Some Return on Investment (ROI) observations:

• Revenue Growth. Business starts with brand awareness. They can't buy from you if they don't know who you are.  Your people, if allowed, will help build your brand awareness. Non quota-carrying personnel will also start bringing in leads, and elevating customer satisfaction.  
• Productivity and Profitability.  Did you know that the latest research boils employee satisfaction down to having the ability to "make progress" at work?  Social media, when deployed internally, is none other than a massive roadblock remover.  Have an idea and want to see if it stinks before you elevate it?  Post the idea on the internal network.  Watch good ideas get into the fast lane, bullet-proofed, and be ready for global prime-time in 1/100th of the time it takes without social media.
• Greatness.  The folks behind the FORTUNE MOST ADMIRED COMPANIES list say the one factor that contributes the most to companies being on the list is the ability to excel at cross-silo communication.

"But Social Media Has Risks, Employees Can Act Dumb, and we have Regulatory Concerns."

Yup. Get over it. Figure it out. Red Cross is figuring it out. As is ETrade, Marriott, EMC, Kodak, Ford, SAP, and zillions of other companies.  Cisco is even saying that they plan to phase out email for its employees. Guess they're figuring it out -- and pushing the boundary even further.

 

----------------- Talk Back -------------------

 What are your thoughts on the state of social media for work (stage on the adoption cycle?) and the state of adoption of social media at work (allowing and enabling employees to use social media)?

What companies are doing things well?

Is your company in the state of Risk of Ignoring ROI, or Return on Investment ROI?

 

Thanks for spending time here. Feel free to share.

- Polly Pearson
President
Pearson Advisory -- specializing in brand relations, employment branding, and reputation management. 

@PollyPearson on Twitter. Follow me! I try not to hurt.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How to Get an Inspired Workforce

The most intimidating assignment I ever had was to figure out a way to get a large, disenchanted workforce to get charged up with the company strategy, and trust management again. (Note: I found investors and media to be comparatively easy in this regard -- but EMPLOYEES?  They don't want to be told, and they can't be sold, right?)

I believe I found the keys to that kingdom.

In fact, discovering how to solve this challenge became one of the most rewarding times of my career. 

Many of my findings are played out in Daniel Pink's book "Drive," covering the surprising science behind motivation.  I just found this great clip today, which consolidates his book down to 10 minutes of solid, (and entertaining), information. Watch it. Share it.

This new way of managing unleashes the global genius, elicits passion and motivation from your workforce, and blows through the roof the ROI you get on your headcount investment.

In a study published by Harvard last year, it, similarly, found that the number one motivating factor to employees is simply to "make progress" on the job. Not money.  But actually being able to do what they think should be done -- and be freed of the roadblocks that crush passion, enthusiasm, and drive in its tracks. 

Here are my conclusions and guiding principles for inspiring your workforce, getting them engaged with the strategy, believing in leadership, and elevating company results:

• Treat your employees like adults, and lead with "trust."
  Your employees aren't kids. Let's stop treating them that way. They're trained critical thinkers, many with advanced degrees. They don't want to be fired. They actually want the company to be successful. Help them help you. Give them more ownership and more respect.  Lead with trust. Avoid penalizing the 99% of your people who will help, because of the 1% who might hurt. 

 

• "Include," rather than "Tell." 
  Include your people in the questions you're trying to solve, and let them help you come up with the best answer. Give them a means to share and contribute beyond doing what their manager has asked them to do, and beyond listening to your PowerPoints. By participating in the decision making process, they'll be more apt to support the conclusion and you will get a better and faster result. And just wait until you hear the contribution your introverts can make to the business!  Right now, their voices are silent to you.  What they have to say will change your world.

 

• Step out of the way.
  Once your people know the "why" and the "what," do them a favor and get out of the way. Let your people get to work on making progress and helping your company be great. Measure on results, rather the micro-managing the hows.

 

Social networking tools -- and the behaviors that come with them -- are a GIFT to management teams everywhere.  They invite cross-silo communication and collaboration; community and culture building; speed and company agility; remote team interaction;  innovation; and any initiative the company wishes to launch.  

Social networking tools and behaviors help you get a 10x bang for the buck from your headcount cost.  Why?  Because people are not limited to their job descriptions on internal social networks.  As a result, you get passionate and knowledgeable workers contributing in unexpected places with wonderfully unexpected results.  Think Wikipedia for your business.

 

--------------- Talk Back -----------------

 When were you the most psyched up on the job?  When you made the most money, or were given the ability, freedom, and respect to apply your wisdom on the job? 

Where is your company on this journey?

If you need a third party to come in and talk with your management team about this new way of motivating and bringing in the business results, you know how to find me.

Thanks for engaging.

- Polly

@pollypearson on Twitter
linkedin.com/in/pollypearson

 

Leadership Meet the Next Revolutionaries: Your Employees.

Unsure? Connect the dots between Egypt and the prescient firing of Time Inc. Publishing Unit's CEO.

In a memo to Time employees, it was declared that CEO "Griffin's 'leadership style' was the reason for his ouster. Examples, so says the Wall Street Journal?  His leading with his own ego (at great expense to the company, and at an absurd conflict the company's culture), and calling meetings at times fully disrespectful to the lives of the employees.

Wow. 

I've long said that at the answer to, "What to do about this omnipresent social media phenomenon and the world of work," is based in "behavior" more than "technology."

Think about the behavior we are now surrounded by in our daily lives. It is in-congruent with the style found in workplace cultures aligned solely with hierarchical leadership-driven "command and control."

We are living in an era where our population has been "trained" to participate.

• Participative TV (American Idol voting; Reality TV)
• Participative News (blogs; on-line comments)
• Participative Celebrity (personal branding)
• Participative Elections (Obama's fund-raising driven by $25 donations) 

Here is the deal -- leadership has been too slow to welcome participative workplaces. And guess what happened while CEOs have been goaling their companies to be a "best place to work" while still not changing leadership styles?

The Baby Is Born.

 
PHOTO: A very special baby.

In Egypt, I am taken with the quote, "the baby is born," from NEWSWEEK article titled "Rage Against the Regime"written in the midst of the uprising. Within this article, 44 year-old Egyptian journalist Gameela Ismail is quoted as saying,

 "But the good part of it is that, you know, the baby was born! Finally, finally, the people feel confident that they can do something good, that they can show their anger, they can call ‘Down with Mubarak!’ They broke this barrier of fear—so the baby is born. Will it be a girl? A boy? Breast-fed or powder milk? How will we raise it? What school will it go to? That we do not know yet. But the baby is born.”

What Will Happen Next at Workplaces Globally

Socially-driven uprisings will happen in workplaces who have not yet tapped into the newly collaborative model of work. At risk are workplaces who do not recognize that their employees are adults -- adults who have ideas, who are close to customers, and who want to help their companies be more successful.

For years, maybe even decades, these employees have been "eating it." They've lived their job descriptions and put up with it when their ideas were ignored and squashed, when they see ignorant plays called, when they spend personal time writing status reports that they suspect no one is reading. They've been complaining at neighborhood barbeque's, sure, but that was about it. They were powerless to do anything more.

But now, there are new models for them to vet -- and vent -- their ideas.  

So, what will you do?  Ignore it? Or get ahead of it so you can work WITH this awesome power of passion?  I see the choice as to get to know this new world, and participate in it, so that you can be the leader the workplace so desires -- or to have it ignore you. New leaders will emerge, with or without you.

--------------- TALK BACK ---------------------

Do you see it?

I have never seen anything more clearly in my professional life.

And it doesn't have to be bad. It can -- and wants to be -- GREAT.

The new participative model, with your great assistance, can make fast and informed decisions, it can generate revenue while you sleep, transform your customers into passionate and profitable advocates, and can move your brand into the spotlight with none of the old Madison Avenue tricks or expenses.

I have worked at the heart of the goodness of "social transformation at work," and can help you see and take the path, if you need help. It does take a tad of courage. Know it can be done, easier and faster than you think. 

The employees are eagerly waiting for you to lead.

It is up to you.

 

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@PollyPearson on Twitter

 PS: The baby shown happens to be mine. My third born; a natural leader, well-nurtured, and filled with awesome potential.

 

------------ UPDATE ----------------

Monday, March 7th.  NPR may see it too -- though they took the leap to include Charlie Sheen.

In the article, "Charlie Sheen a bellwether for what's next," Michel Martin writes,  

"And I know this: He is not the first and will not be the last person to want to tell his boss to stuff it. He will not, in these times when loyalty to employees is nonexistent, be the last to point out inconveniently that however much he is being paid, his bosses are making that much more from the fruits of his labor. He will not be the last to believe, as many people seem to think in many other fields of endeavor, that he can do whatever he wants — sexually, financially, to other people's retirement accounts — as long as he is bringing in the cash. And while I personally don't think his behavior is healthy for his five kids to witness, is it any worse than seeing your parents humiliated by long-term unemployment? But a million people aren't tweeting about that, are they?"

When Silos Don't Speak: a Leadership and "Social" Opportunity

It isn't just your company -- a common denominator I'm finding in my work with small and large companies alike, is that communication across business silos is a major issue. And it is an issue that, in the context of business dynamics today, is GROWING. I hear phrases like "the leaders don't talk with one another" and the mission of our company is "lacking clarity" all the time. Sound familiar?

Executives, perhaps surprisingly, are yearning for more clarity of direction and overall connection to the greater organization even more than line-employees.  (I suspect the line-employees are used to feeling a bit left out -- executives are not.)

I was called on to help with just such a situation of company-wide low "strategy engagement," shortly after the prior recession. Below I'll share two strategies which were deployed. One worked, one did not.

PLAN A: Data, and a Tops-Down Approach.

After a series of one-on-one interviews with the company executives to understand and validate the problem, I started with an analytical approach. Essential information about the company's, and its business units' annual and quarterly goals, priorities, and objectives was documented in an easy to read format -- everything "on a page" with hyperlinks to drill downs. Visability into how goals did, or did not, dovetail with one another and the overarching company priorities was part of the design. (Don't assume this information is written down until someone asks for it!) I quickly found that divisional leaders were eager to see the document. That's right about where this particular approach ended.

It didn't work.

Despite high praise for the work from the most data-stringent of the executives, and an executive round-table reviewing the data where they outlined the next session where they would go deeper, and start having "prioritizing talks" -- the body of work became a hot potato doomed to be roadkill. 

[*This company certainly had constructive strategy-dovetailing conversations down the line. My point here is that is this was not the ideal place to START when you want the company to start communicating, getting more connected with one another, and the greater mission.]

PLAN B: Emotion, and an All-Around Approach

Plan B came about almost by happen-stance. After about six months into the job of "Strategy Engagement," I found myself helping out a division articulate the value prop of their organization for recruiting purposes.

This exercise prompted some community-involved conversations about what they, as individuals, looked for in an ideal job, and what inspired them to work there.  The "inspire" word was the key to the kingdom.  What emerged when asked that question was visceral. 

Thus began the more bottoms-up and community-based "Strategy Engagement" work -- which, when paired with social technology and BEHAVIOR, greatly fanned the flames of cross-silo communication, innovation, revenue generation, and more.

What was at the core of Plan B? Two Things.

1.  "Social Media at Work" 
   
   The company had a nascent internal social network at the time. My role, and that of many others at the company, became one of listening, genuine participation, sharing, facilitating, and removing of road blocks in the way of goodness.
   
   When enabled and welcomed to do so, employees embrace communicating with one another!  When they feel safe to share, they will share ideas that will spawn wonderous cross-silo communication -- and as a result, community spirit will take root and grow.
2. LEADERSHIP STYLE 
   
   The leadership increasingly displayed a self-less/ego-less style and avoided trying to control the conversation.  They learned to listen more to the "global genius" of the workforce, before calling the play. 
   
   Reminds me of something I heard from Jack Welch of GE fame, once:  He described his role as "Leader" by saying, "I walk around with fertilizer and water." 
   
   When this leadership style is blended with the tool of social networking at work, amazing things happen!

RESULTS?

After just two to three years of Plan B's leadership-enabled organic growth -- one marked with inclusion, "water & fertilizer leadership," and social technology -- this particular company (EMC) was rewarded with results which included record levels of employee satisfaction, product innovation, customer satisfaction, market share, and revenue.

MOST ADMIRED COMPANY

And another thing:  Continued respect.

The people who conduct the survey behind FORTUNE's Most Admired Companies once shared with me their findings on the single most important factor to STAYING on that list:  "cross-silo collaboration." 

----------------- TALK BACK------------------------

What is your company doing -- or not doing -- to help enable cross-silo communication and collaboration? 

Is it a challenge where you work? 

If you would like to explore this subject more for your business or consulting practice, feel free to contact me.

Thanks for engaging.

 

-- Polly Pearson 
pearsonpolly@gmail.com
@pollypearson on Twitter
http://www.pollypearson.com

How to Determine the Health of a Company

Last week I presented at the Knowledge Infusion Forum in Chicago -- an event for HR execs. One of the fellow speakers was the Bob Rosner, author and head of Workplace 911. Bob is a funny guy and his presentation was filled with story-snippets that made you smile. One snippet, however, struck me as potent.

PHOTO: Robert Reich, source: UC Berkely

Bob recalled an interview he conducted with Robert Reich, former Secretary of Labor. Secretary Reich struck Bob as astute on so many subjects, Bob decided to toss him a curve ball and asked a question along the lines of,

"Would you be able to determine the health of a company by simply walking in the door?"

"Yes," said Mr. Reich.

"How?," asked Bob.

"Within seconds I could tell you by listening to pronouns the employees used while conversing," continued Mr. Reich. "If they used 'we' and 'us' the company was healthy. If they used 'they' and 'them' the company has a problem."

 

-------- Talk Back -------------

 

Does this ring true for you?

I'd give it a solid, "yes."  I experienced this first-hand in my time at EMC, but had never really thought of the behavior in such an overt way. As I think back, most every interaction I had with fellow EMCers contained the word, "we."  I could tell when newly acquired companies started to feel part of EMC when they stopped using "you guys" or "core EMC" in their remarks and started to use, "us."

While Reich may have worked as Labor Secretary under Bill Clinton, I think his comments are as wise as ever.

OTHER THEORIES FROM DAYS OF OLD

For other options to help determine the health of a company -- or a smile if nothing else -- I'm reminded of two other theories I encountered from investors during the 1990's.

Around 1993 (pre- mass market use of the World Wide Web!), one investor called our investor relations department to ask for a photo of our headquarter building.  "May we ask 'why?'" an associate inquired of the caller.  The reply, "I'll know you're a good investment if the building is basic and square.  I never invest in a company with a fancy headquarter building -- a fountain out front is the kiss of death!"  (The EMC Founder's motto was "put your money where your customers best appreciate it," -- so I'm sure our (then) basic, square brick HQ passed this investor test!)

In the mid-1990's, another investor called one day to remark about our parking lot.  He said, "I just want to call and tell you I find your parking lot inspirational!  I drove by a few times last week well after 5:00 pm and each time the lot was full.  That is my primary test for buying a stock.  I bought a ton."

Score one for the timeless theory of Reich!

 

Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson on Twitter 

 

 

How Do You Inspire, Win Hearts, and Dare we Say it, "Sell?"

The Untapped Business Opportunity of "Emotion."

I happened to have lunch yesterday with Barry Burke, an EMC Chief Technology Strategist, blogger, and overall communication/presentation pro, and we got on the subject of the role of emotions in decision making.   Think OPPORTUNITY. Think "information and technique" that they don't teach readily schools, or in most places of business.

(Personally, I became convinced of the power of emotion in decision making -- even multi-billion dollar decisions -- when I ran EMC's Investor Relations function in the 1990s.)

Barry lit up on the subject, and referenced a recent post he made on it with regard to using this knowledge for effective presentations.  To support his epiphany, he shared this TED video -- which I am now shamelessly ripping off.

Watch it. Then examine a recent connecting/inspiring/selling communication opportunity you had recently. 

Now ask yourself if there is anything you might change, by way of approach, to elevate the connection you could have with your audience?

PS:  I got invited to my first TED today, taking place in Boston.  Color me excited.

----------------------- Talk Back ---------------------------

What research or anecdotes do you have to prove, or disprove this "science" as the speaker, Simon Sinek, called it?

I was captivated when reading a book, a year or so ago, by Michael Lee Stallard called, "Fired Up or Burned Out," when Michael pointed to this same unbalanced-for-results, left brained/right brained behavior in business communication with employees. 

As Michael pointed out, most FORTUNE 500 execs are the data-driven type.  They talk to you in data terms. They tell you what to do.  BUT, most decision making is done on an emotional level.  When we share "why" we want to do things, and let our people help figure out "what" to do to meet the "why's" objective, everyone will be better for it.  When we show people we CARE (here we go with that "warm," soft-stuff-at-work I keep evangelizing), we work to build connection and trust ... which fuels "hard,"and wonderful business results.

Yes? No?

Thanks for engaging.

-- Polly
@pollypearson on Twitter
http://www.pollypearson.com

Workplace Choices and Dating.

EMC once had a head of recruiting who described the talent/workplace match process like "dating."  It is a two-way street, she said.  The magic has to be there on both sides.  It isn't always a match -- as much as one side might like it to be so. 

Matchmaking: Workplace like Dating?

 

[Patriots QB Tom Brady with Gisele Bundchen when they got engaged. Source: hollywoodismyhood.com]

"Is EMC a Hard Place to Work?"

Someone asked me this question yesterday.

I had just finished speaking at a Boston University School of Management forum for business leaders working to tackle issues like innovation, globalization, and adoption of new tools and behaviors such as social networking in the workplace.

When I was done with the presentation, I could see "that look" on people's faces.  The look said, "Wow. I had no idea EMC was so far along in this realm of a "21st Century networked organization."  It also said, "I had no idea EMC was bringing in those type of results -- and that your people were so enabled to apply their ideas and passions to the job."  (Net: "I had no idea EMC was so HOT!")

After the presentation, a woman in the audience from a very well known company said to me, with a bit of sudden confusion in her voice, "I had heard EMC is a hard place to work, especially for women. Is that true?"

It took me a second to think how best to answer this question. I found myself saying, "Yes.  It is a hard place to work -- just like any perennial championship team would be a hard place to work.  You're surrounded by people playing their best games, and as a result it raises your game, your expectations of the team, and your desire to be even better.  There is no desire for a glide path. That environment is not for everyone, men or women," I said with a smile. "For some, it isn't a match.  For others, there is nothing like it. I've been here about twenty years. The level of play continues to elevate. For people who love to make things happen, be surrounded by others who feel the same, and who together deliver win after win ... well, to us, this is fun."

Of course, that's my opinion, and my experience. [your mileage may vary.]

[Patriots QB Tom Brady while dating Gisele Bundchen. Source: obsessedwithsports.com]

----- Talk Back -------

Thoughts?

It strikes me that Zappos might have this type of culture as well, and match making philosphy -- the people seem to have passion and connection and love engaging with the market every day.

- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson on Twitter

What "Good Social Media" at a Company Looks Like, IMHO

This interview was just released -- I love, love, love it.  If you're interested in topics such as

• Getting Social Media behavior/tools going at your company
• How to get bloggers blogging at your company
• What "good" looks like in internal and external social communities
• The relationship between social media strategy and company culture
• How many cups of free cappuccino and espresso can you expect to be consumed over 3 days in a popular blogger's lounge

... then you should see this video.  I RARELY watch 15 minute videos myself, but this one is worth it, and entertaining too boot. It features 3 key folks behind the platform and strategy in use at EMC.

Watch live video from The Cube LIVE from EMC World 2010 on Justin.tv

--------------- Talk Back ------------------

Thoughts? Impressions?

-- Polly Pearson
Http://www.pollypearson.com

@PollyPearson on Twitter

How Dusty is Your People Strategy?

My first real-real job of strategic merit included handling internal communications and public relations, and my office was right next to that of the Company's Founder.  An after-effect, now some twenty years later at the same company, is that I think of myself as a bit of a company culture maven.  The culture and the stories of this place are deep within in my cerebral muscle memory.

For the past few years I've gone more officially into this space of "culture," as we work on connecting the hearts and minds of the people of EMC to one another (community), and to the company strategy at a level one million times greater than the 'small company' approaches we used way back when.   I know what we're doing and how we're thinking at EMC today represents a major change, and could, in fact, be considered "transformative" ...

AND YET, it took an off-the-cuff remark by EMC's EVP of HR, Jack Mollen, the other day to shed a new light on the subject for me.   He said,

"Over the years, your product strategy changes, your go-to-market model changes; it only makes sense that your people strategy would need to change as well."

Simple sentence, yet profound.

At EMC, "our people strategy" and culture had never really been a big topic of discussion. (Barring one time in the late 1990s when business was so strong, our people got a bit cocky.  In this case, "attention" was like a big "Time Out" for many employees.)

Sure, HR has had its talent strategies, succession strategies and the like -- but until recently, I've never heard such constant chatter and focus on it from the executive and line business leaders.  AND THIS TIME, it isn't because anyone has been misbehaving. IT IS POSITIVE in focus, in intent ... and is being built on a position of strength.  There is no burning platform, just a burning desire to be great. And as a result, it is transforming our company as much, or more, than any product- or market-oriented strategy.

Just the other day, Joe Tucci, our CEO, was in an interview and discussed the natural evolution of culture. (See clip -- short, and even humorous). 

Funny enough, the very next day, he addressed about 6,000 EMC employees and after discussing the giant new company strategy (Private Cloud), he went right to being a great company for our people. 

There was no NEED to do that. No PRESSURE to do that. It comes from a clear desire.

His passion, role modeling, and endorsement of big new people-centric BEHAVIOR (think "open culture' as seen in widespread employee social media participation, major roll out of flexible working arrangements, record candor and regular communication throughout the downturn and now upturn, serious commitment to sustainability, and more) is having wide ripple effects.  

------------------------ TALK BACK --------------------------

How is your department, or your company doing on elevating this conversation on par with that of the customer strategy, the product strategy, and the financial strategy? 

Are you still treating and talking "to" your people like you did in the 80s or the 90s?

It was only three years ago at EMC that we stopped a "cultural classic" memo sent to all employees (for 2 decades) right around the first snowfall.  Its title, "Yes, Folks It Snows in New England."  The "on the surface" message was that we have customers all around the world who depend on us, and we need to be here -- snow or no snow in New England -- to tend to their needs. The "under the surface" message was, "Get your behind to work. Get up earlier to shovel if you have to, just get into the office."

It took some time for many who saw themselves "upholding the culture" to open their lens and realize, at this stage of remote connectivity and the like, that we can still be customer-centric while also being human ... and more considerate of our CURRENT workforce and workplace needs.  A more recent and still living example, is the embracing of open, collaborative, Web 2.0 behavior at work. The act of embracing this, involves releasing some of the old cultural, "command and control" norms.

In short, it was time for an UPDATED, people strategy that lived within the fabric of the culture itself -- a strategy that could sit alongside in importance with the customer strategy and the product strategy.

Maybe I'm sharing too many warts here.  Maybe your company has had a deep and caring people strategy ON THE SURFACE and OUT IN THE OPEN for decades. (Our people caring strategy has always been intense and generous, but was all too often behind closed doors. On the surface, we were the "tough-get-to-work; serve-the-customer" company.)

Why bother with "The People," given other loud business priorities? 

As I see it:

1. Engaged people engage customers, who engage your top and bottom line.
2. Business is conducted by people. Customer satisfaction begins with your people.
3. Healthy, passionate, and energized people breed a healthy, passionate and energized company.

How dusty is your people strategy?

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson on Twitter

Business Equals Human Beings: Transformation 2.0, and Storytelling in Tech Land.

So I'm here in the bloggers lounge at EMCWorld, and in comes a bunch of EMC's top folks.  Joe Tucci, CEO; Jeff Nick, CTO; Jeremy Burton, CMO; Jack Mollen, EVP of HR.  Whatever. (smile, wink) I keep blogging;  keeping an ear out toward what was happening on the stage.

I see Jack come over to the bank of PCs sitting on top of a high-bar-type table, where I was trying to write.  "Show me the blogs?" he asked.  I pointed to the "blogs" hyperlink on the EMCWorld page, and then along came Len Devanna, who gleefully started to tell him where he could read the blogs being put out today.  Then, a funny role reversal moment:  Jack says, "Polly, do you have that flip camera thingy?" 

Ahhh, duh! It took Jack to remind me of the great video'ing opportunity we had right in front of my nose.

Len lit up.  "Yes," he said, smiling. I took out the camera and asked Len to interview Jack, himself. Topic: Talent, and the 2.0 Open, Collaboration Movement. (PS: In the  background -- that's Chuck Hollis of Chuck's Blog fame.)

Then, Jack agreed to interview Jeremy, our new CMO. Topic:  EMC brand opportunity and personal impressions at EMCWorld. (This and more will be posted later.)

Next, I put the camera on Joe Tucci and Michael Capellas (the famous career CEO who just joined EMC to run our Cloud business.) Topic: EMC culture change and how Joe factors competition into his behavior as a CEO.

Then ... some really good stuff.  An exchange between Michael and Jack on the courtship of a CEO and how he came to join EMC.  They lit up telling the story.  "At a Red Sox game," says Jack.  Joe called Jack while he was in Cambodia and said, "Talk to Michael!" 

"99.9 percent right," said Michael. It was a YANKEES game, and in the fourth inning Joe turned to me and said, "So, whatdaya think?"

---------------- Talk Back -------------------

Can you see the power of incorporating the human, and the color, into the business landscape? Everyone involved in the process had fun with it -- and now, I can't wait to upload the videos and share the emotion, the body language, and yes, the content with EMC's global force.

Which reminds me, an EMCer from Germany came up to me at the concert last night to thank me again for the "Leadership in Action" reality TV videos I've been doing.  He reminded me of the thank you note he send me after one of the editions.  "You have no idea how valuable they are," he said.  "We're so removed from Corporate. We don't get to see these execs, and hear them at that level. Thank you. It helps keep us connected."

--http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson on Twitter :)

Workplace 2.0: Timeline, Year ONE

My prior post kicking off the Timeline of one company's  2.0 journey prompted sharing of more perspective on what was happening at our company around the time we got motivated to move down this road.  See the following from Chuck Hollis:

Comments

Chuck Hollis said...

Great perspective, Polly.

If we're thinking about 2006, I'd add a bit more context to what was going on at the time.

-- we had about a dozen or so "skunkworks" social media things floating around the company, none being done particularly well.

-- as a result of rampant acquisition and globalization, it felt more like an army of fiefdoms, rather than one company; we couldn't connect ourselves internally for a variety of reasons.

-- and, as our external conversations were getting richer, we were increasingly frustrated by our inability to connect the inside and outside of our company using traditional 1.0 means.

-- frustration levels were rising exponentially across the business; we needed a new type of answer.

You're right -- the BOD meeting was in many ways the "tipping point" -- it gave us the license to look at this strategically vs. tactically.

But many of the underlying forces were well in play.

Thanks for writing this down!

-- Chuck

_______________________________________________

I'm happy Chuck shared this.  It prompted me to look for a one-page report I wrote for the EVP of HR, Jack Mollen -- dateline May, 2006.  Jack had recently tasked me with "Strategy Engagement" and his problem statement was, simply, 

"The company revenue is back on track, the strategy is getting high marks from the marketplace, but it doesn't feel "hot" in the hallways.  Why?"

Adding to the backdrop, our employee motivation and satisfaction scores were not improving in tandem with the business results, and scores were not good in areas relating to employee connection with the company strategy.

The report I wrote for Jack was a one-page situation analysis.  It contained the findings of a research project I did to better understand the state of disconnect we were looking at.  I figured we couldn't start to solve it, until we knew, in the most honest and genuine fashion, what was on the minds of our leaders.   So I set up one-on-ones with about 25 VPs who I believed would share their most candid thoughts.  The results were potent.

Following is the core of the report:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

May 10, 2006

Challenge: 

 

EMC complexity, many moving parts, and pace of the business is resulting in a sub-optimal level of information sharing and engagement with and between our VPs, and follow on information flow to their organizations. Select VP quote:

 

 “We have VPs here with millions and millions in budget who have no idea as to the ramifications of their actions on other organizations.”

 

On a score of 1-5 with 5 being superior, VP’s score their ability to be fully leveraged and engaged in the business based on the information they have at a 2-3.

 

VPs are requesting:

-          At least 2 face to face meetings per year

-          Webcasts/Webseminars, perhaps quarterly, on topics of significance.

-          Regular communication that identifies top business developments and puts it in context from an executive viewpoint.

-          Visibility and clarity as to the near-term and long-term strategies and goals of EMC and its major organizations/lines of business.

-          Arranged social interaction time with their peers.

 

As for content of the face to face meetings, one SVP outlined the following:

 

“Strategy development and deployment. -- Easy to develop it; hard to execute on it.”

o       Review challenges facing the business

o       Cover how do we collectively meet the requirements that we’ve signed ourselves up for? For example, if software missed its number, how can my organization’s business perhaps help it?

o       Where can we get synergies across the business?

o       How do we make it look like one EMC?

o       Where are the operational efficiencies?”

--------------------------------------------

Looking at the report I can't help but make a mental bookmark on our still very hierarchical thinking in terms of information sharing; and be VERY PROUD of how far we've come.

-------------------- TALK BACK --------------------

EMCers, do you remember this time?  We had put forth a singular EMC strategy to our customers, "Information Lifecycle Management," yet we were still acting like several distinct companies inside and outside of our company walls.  

It was very hard on all of us.  We are an engaged culture of passionate, innovative people who focus on successful results.  I think there was a funky mood in the hallways because we all knew we weren't operating as cohesively as we could. But how to solve it?

We're far from perfect today of course, but gosh are things so, so, so, so much better! We ended the year 2009, of course, with a quarter showing RECORD revenue and customer satisfaction, as well as RECORD employee engagement.

-- Polly Pearson
- http://www.pollypearson.com
@PollyPearson on Twitter

Timeline: Workplace 2.0

How do you get started with a 21st Century approach to workplace culture and behavior norms?

I was part of an industry advisory type forum recently where I actually got a bit frustrated with how professional communicators were getting so caught up ("constipated" might be a better word) in the minutia, that I thought I would die.

It took the frustrated plea from a person representing a company that was likely 80 years old or more, and headquartered in the Midwest, for me to begin to see their key point of frustration.

The breakthrough concept:

"Every company (management team) is at a different point in the spectrum of readiness."

For high-tech companies, it could likely come faster and easier. For others, not necessarily the case.

It was suggested that a timeline, noting different stages of deployment, be put together.  Such a timeline may help people show their management teams, or visualize for themselves, where they could start the journey, and how systems could move forward, at whatever timeframe works best for that particular company or industry.

With that motivation in mind, I put together a slide to represent EMC's journey, from my vantage point, toward a state that has been referred to with terms such as:

• Web 2.0, or Social Media-Savvy
• Workplace 2.0
• Open Culture
• The "Connection and Collaboration" culture
• The 21st Century model for employee engagement (or organizational communication)
• Employment Branding, leveraging open/transparent behavior norms

As I started to write this post, I quickly realized that this will have to roll out in a series, as the discussion for each year, while only a snapshot, is long enough to be considered a full post.

Here is a look at just Year One of our journey -- that is, the first year in which heat got into the organizational system on the subject.  Don't be fooled for how it began. Key people were at the table and watch out -- YEAR TWO was a HUGE year of activity!

 
 

Disclaimer: The timeline reflects just my poor-memory look at the some of the steps we took from a vantage point of the Employment Brand Office. This slide is one we could and likely should build-out to show the the richness of approach, reflecting the priorities from many organizations at EMC.  If you're reading, Len Devanna, Chuck Hollis, Mark Twomey -- have at ... add to its bounty and truthful depiction!

Talk Track:

2006

"SOMETHING IN THE AIR:"

There was a now-famous Board of Directors meeting (which I did not attend) around November of 2006. At the meeting, there was a powerful sentiment that "there was something in the air" with social media for business.  Marketing was tasked with "looking into it."  Jack Egan, a member of our Board and an exec with deep roots in the IT industry and with VCs, was a key player that day.  Whether he knows it or not, he helped provide a type of encouragement, and likely air-cover for current and future storage industry bloggers.  How? With this simple sentence, "Chuck, I like your blog."

EMC had about three "mainstream bloggers" at that point -- bloggers like Mark Twomey (aka Storagezilla),field tech out of Ireland; Mark Lewis (Mark's blog) an EVP (now divisional President); and Chuck Hollis (Chuck's blog), Marketing VP & CTO, come to mind.

Where was I?

During 2006, I had just moved into HR and was at the starting gate of understanding what comprised a desirable place to work, and what EMC needed to work on.

By way of workplace collaboration tools, we had eRoom, and e-Mail. We had in-person meetings, web conferencing numbers, and Webcast ability -- and just as often, we forgot to Webcast our internal meetings, so that our colleagues on the West Coast or in Europe could see the presentation as well. Our tools and face-to-face behavior were an increasing source of frustration for many of our workers. (Examples: College students joining EMC expected more than we had to offer in terms of collaboration tools, web access, and telecommuting. Acquired companies and operations outside of Massachusetts had to remind us all too often to consider time zones, and the virtual sharing of content to be discussed.)

I had been reading the early blogs, and advocating for more social tools (ala IM) inside of EMC. I was love/hating the prodding we were getting from our recently acquired West Coast companies/divisions. It seemed, to me, that they were ahead of the game with regard to workplace collaboration. I was concerned EMC wasn't moving fast enough.

NEXT POST:  YEAR TWO

-------------------- Talk Back ----------------------

What do you recall about your workplace norms in 2006?  Where were you/your company?

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@PollyPearson

Your People (employees) As Your Best Brand in Action

Today I had a pop-in visit to my office by Steve Todd (photo below).  We caught up on a few subjects and, like most of my visits with Steve, our time ended with new ideas and execution plans.

Some time after he left, I glanced at the Tweet stream about EMC today, and saw a post he wrote for Vault.com being promoted like crazy (by entities not affiliated with EMC.)

I wondered what it was all about and found this (excerpts pasted below the photo). It is filled with words people like me love to read.  And yet, funny enough, Steve never mentioned it to me. 

THAT, is how it works in the ideal world!!  "That," of course, being the notion that it becomes second nature for your people to comment favorably on their jobs and their workplace culture.  ... Nothing to write home about. Nothing special enough to call attention to the "Polly" at your company.  Just another day ... 

[Photo: EMC Distinguished Engineer Steve Todd. EMC's CTO Barry Burke in background.]

The following is an excerpt from a blog post by Steve Todd on career site Vault.com:

How to Find Engaging High-Tech Careers

One of the long-held stereotypes of high-tech engineering jobs is that of a cave troll typing away in a basement cubicle, sacrificing personal time in order to hit impossible deadlines. This image extends to the large corporations that value productivity, obedience, diligence, and intellect above all else.

Contrast this stereotype with the 21st century view of how to stimulate innovation in large corporations: passion, creativity, and initiative. According to Gary Hamel, these traits do not necessarily replace obedience, diligence, and intellect; they complement them.

When interviewing for a high-tech position, you would do well to uncover how far your potential employer has come in the practice of stimulating employee initiative. ... Corporations need productive employees to generate revenue. They also need creative employees that take the initiative to guide their teams into the future while simultaneously delivering upon their commitments. There are two lines of questioning that will help you assess the culture of your potential new team.  [Go to Vault to read these!]

... I work for a large, multi-national corporation (EMC) that is currently in the midst of a shift to a 21st century management style. My company sponsors global idea contests for all employees. I am also starting to see contests held within individual business units. Coding challenges are a part of the corporate experience. Knowledge transfer across geographies is emphasized. Employees and local universities are also encouraged to lecture on their area of expertise.

Beware the answer that rings of “we work hard, all day, all the time”, and/or “we don’t have time for that stuff”. If you have your mind set on the practice of innovation, this particular company may not be the one for you.

However, if you find ready answers to your questions, you have likely found a corporation that “gets it”. There’s a good chance that accepting a job offer will result in the opportunity to combine productivity and initiative.

-Posted by Steve Todd, EMC Distinguished Engineer. Read more of Steve’s posts on careers in the tech field on his Innovate with Influence blog on Vault.

----------------- Talk Back -----------------

I've blogged before that I think "employees are the new brand spend."  All we have to do is get out of the way a little. Stop attempting to control it all, approve it all, and let them speak.  They might just do a really great job.

(Your people are, after all, well educated adults who really don't want to be fired, or to say something you would absolutely hate. )

Yes?  No? Thoughts?

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@PollyPearson on Twitter.

A Business Vitality Cocktail for the 21st Century: Brand, Employees, Social Media, People Management

Sometimes it takes a 3rd party to prompt you to state your thesis of sorts.

This recently happened for me, with the results published today in an article titled, "People are the Best Brand."

HR Summit, a member organization for HR pros, put out the article. It does a great job:

• providing a view on this new-fangled job I hold, "Employment Branding and Strategy Engagement,"
• outlining my personal views that put branding, employees, people management norms, and social media into a blender for a 21st Century business vitality cocktail*, and
• the approach EMC is taking with regard to all of the above (kudos to EMC EVP of HR, Jack Mollen, for having the courage to take this approach -- and to EMC's Marketing, Products & Quality organization, under the leadership of EVP Frank Hauck, to see that this need does not fall on HR's shoulders alone).

A peek at the article follows.

*Note, the cocktail term will not be found in the article.  That analogy just came to me now -- I rather like it! A health drink with some Zing for today's businesses!

----------- Talk Back --------------

What do you think about this model or approach?  Did you see Jack's line about "leveraging the global genius?"  I love that one.

Or does it all sound a bit too liberal nicey-nice?  That potential argument has been nagging me a bit.

As luck would have it, a colleague and thought leader in this "Business 2.0" space, popped casually into my office the other day to discuss a meeting he and I are going to have with an EMC customer on the 2.0 subject. He threw out this line, in a matter of fact way:

"This is all about the right model at the right time. 2.0 is great in most cases -- such as for 'innovation,' and there are also instances where it won't be the right model, such as legal compliance.

Right-oooohhhhh.

The norms of the 20th Century were likely 75% plus  "tell the employees what to do, police them, and share business information on a 'need to know' basis."  Never 100%. The same "not necessarily 100%" formula could be used in this 21st Century, collaboration and connection model.   Yes?

Where do you, or your company stand?  Read the article. Can you see the vision?

--Polly Pearson

http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson

Humor: Employee Engagement Gone Bad

Saw these photos today via @DailyCareerTips's link to this blog  post on JobMob, and thought I'd share the laugh:

 

Posted with full respect to the value of McDonald's employees --  the details posted on the sign is the indication of engagement gone bad.

The photo below has nothing to do with Employee Engagement gone bad, but was certainly funny in a Dilbert sort of way.  At EMC, we continue to pray to the cost leverage God, and are making our facilities more  efficient at all times.  On that note, I sent this photo to our CFO with a suggestion that he is perhaps, still a bit too easy on us:

This office must stink.

------------------ Talk Back -----------------

Any employee-engagement-gone-bad stories or photos to share?  

- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@PollyPearson

Crazy or Cool -- You tell me. Bold posts.

Some fabulous finds for "brainfood" in the blog-world tonight on subjects circling  leadership, organizational dynamics, the future of education, truly living the brand, the knowledge era, and stuff like that.

This is more than notable, from Jeff Jarvis -- notes from his TEDxNYed presentation, titled, "This is bullshit."

Loved this one by David Meerman Scott: "Social Business Beyond Just the Marketing Department."  

(Be sure to click through to the Peter Kane post that David calls out.)

----------- Talk Back --------------

Crazy or Cool?

- Pollypearson

@pollypearson on Twitter.

Reality TV communication for Employee Engagement and Connection to Strategy

Today we issued the third "episode" of Reality TV-Meets Employee Communication -- Web 2.0 style.

[A screen shot, this of Frank Hauck, from one of the clips.]

Called "Leadership in Action," the intent is to better connect the people of the company with the culture, the strategy, the values, and the leadership of the company.  And by leadership, I mean "leadership at every level."  While most of the clips are of the C-suite type leaders, not all are.

The content is presented as Infotainment that can fit "inside a cup of Joe."  Meaning, the video clips can be consumed quickly and are short. All the content is housed on our internal "collaboration network" (aka social network), where employees can comment on the videos, ask questions and even rate the content with Amazon-type stars.  Every clip is indexed, tagged, and searchable.

[Pictured: Frank Hauck, EVP, and Joe Tucci, EMC CEO share a laugh while I interview them for this "Engaging," web 2.0, employee communication.]

In this edition, we included a casual, high energy exchange between CEO Joe Tucci and EVP Frank Hauck on the day we announced earnings. It was the end of the day, and they were casually leaning against the stage where our record results were just reviewed.  (You read that right. Record results. Recession year; Record results.) They talked about the vibe at the company, the position we were in for the year ahead, and what got them excited as we looked forward.  Best of all, I think, is what wasn't said in words. It is the body language, the laughter, and the clear comfort they had with each other.  In other words, the stuff people generally don't get to see when left to see just the business-as-boring type of corporate communication.

[Pictured: Famed blogger and EMC VP, "VirtualGeek" cracks a joke on stage in the reel made for our Board.]

Also in this edition was a 'fly on the wall' view of what happened at an 'exclusive' series of strategy meetings to frame the year 2010 execution plan. This video was actually created, on request of our Vice Chairman and head of global sales, for our Board of Directors.  The Vice Chair gave us the okay to share it with all 43,000 employees.  (What? You let your employees see content that was exclusively created for your Board of Directors?  Content from a company strategy meeting no less?  Yup.)  What did it contain, exactly?  A highlight reel of sorts from presentations and panels, and even cocktail parties  -- inclusive of friendly peer-to-peer joking. Only by including the Full Monte, could everyone be able to feel (and reinforce for those who were there) the energy and optimism that oozed from these sessions.

[Pictured: EMC Vice Chair/Head of Global Sales Bill Teuber discussing international go-to-market strategy with AsiaPac President, Steve Leonard.]

What else? Really cool clips of our "theater leads"  the people who own the revenue and profit plans for each major geography.  The Sales organization made changes this year to its market coverage methodology and it is important for everyone to know the what and whys of these changes, at least at the highest levels.  Each leader provided facts, figures, context and stories -- of the type you might get if you had a cup of coffee with them, and they knew you well. They were straight-talking business, yet of a personal and trusted nature.  Like-able candor was a take away for me.

Here is a screen shot of how the list of offerings looks, about 6 hours after being announced to the workforce:

You can see that one of the videos has over 400 views already -- and that the full "video collection" has almost 4,000 views.

Our model isn't perfect yet -- and the video clips never will be perfect.  But they are real, and that is our commitment to the people of EMC.  Nothing fake. Just real, the way you want want to get the information if you worked here.  That's the goal anyway.

Here's a link to a prior blog I wrote about our second edition, with more photos and color.

Here is a sample of one of the clips from our second edition, this of our newest President, Pat Gelsinger, discussing his first 45 days on the job. My peer, Chuck Hollis, called it out on one of his blogs as a way to introduce Pat, now the guy behind EMC products, to the tech readers who frequent Chuck's writings.

------------------ Talk Back ----------------------------

What do you think?

Thoughts to improve the model?

One idea came from an employee who viewed the videos. He pointed out that he was deaf, so he only "got" about half the content, and wondered if we could provide transcripts.  Humm. I never would have thought of that.  You?  (consider it done!)

http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson

Innovation Mashups: 2.0 Customer and Employee Engagement

I saw this little brainchild floating around EMC today and thought it pretty cool -- see image below.

By now, most of us have heard about open source, mashups, and new avenues of innovation -- but have YOU brought them into your company yet?

A group of folks here are doing that in a new way. It is branded. It is fun. It offers nice prize money. It harnesses the global genius of external minds and internal minds. It builds community around EMC brands. It furthers innovation around EMC products -- positioning the company for greater customer satisfaction and revenue in quarters to come.

Check out the Monster Mash Contest in the EMC Community Network (ECN) if you're interested in seeing more.

---------------------- Talk Back -----------------------

Cool example of "leadership at every level?"  Why not?

I also like the fact that one of the people behind the program "marketed it" to other EMCers and asked their help to get the word out.  Again, why not?  Why not ask for help from your peers on things you know can help your company in so many ways?

Kudos to the team behind this.

10 FREE RESOURCES for your Journey with Social Media in the Enterprise and Employee Engagement

My friend Allan Steinmetz of Inward Strategic Consulting and I just finished a Webcast featuring EMC's story on building an employment brand and engaging employees by leveraging web 2.0 and social media behaviors /tools.

I discussed how the body of work started, our strategic approach, how the brand was built out across multiple mediums and social properties, and how along the way organic brand ambassadors emerged and started making real magic happen.

This topic always draws a large audience and today was no exception. 

For those who want to start the social media/Web 2.0 behavior and tool movement at your company, I thought I'd share a few resources which could help:

• 1st:  This white paper, "A Journey in Social Media," by EMC VP and Marketing CTO Chuck Hollis.  Chuck was instrumental in this movement at EMC and kindly dedicated his personal cycles to pulling some of our strategic inflection points, key learnings, and approaches together in this white paper.  The white paper is marked "draft" and his promises likely typos within it -- no matter, this is GOLD for anyone about to start the journey. It is a superb documentation which should save you a ton of headaches and unnecessary consultant fees. It is also filled with the type of frankness you just don't seen enough in business.  Like this, which addresses the likely request for a business case,  an ROI justification, or another means to counter the concerns of your Chief-Apprehensive-Executive.

One of our most effective justification techniques tended to be slightly manipulative given our corporate culture.  We frequently pointed out to people that -- due to the extremely competitive nature of EMC and our business -- we would not want to be in a situation where our competitors had a significant competitive advantage through social media proficiency that we did not have. People tended to understand that concept in a very visceral manner.   ---->  I love that explanation! It is very "real world."

• 2nd: The blog, "Web Strategy by Jeremiah Owyang." Jeremiah is the top rated analyst in the social media and the enterprise space.  He has the top blog on the subject, has been named the top (and most trusted) analyst on Twitter ... and puts out non-stop gems via his Twitter feed and blog.
• 3rd:  The blog, a Journey in Social Media.  Chuck Hollis documented EMC's journey over the first year or so on this blog.  He doesn't post any longer, but the content is awesome and could answer lots of questions for those companies of this FORTUNE 500-size.
• 4th: The blog, "Confessions of an eBiz Junkie."  It is written by EMC's Web Master -- the guy behind those .com, and Knowledge Management Platforms of the '90s ... which are morphing into the social platforms of the 21st Century. Len has been the guy getting his hands dirty in this technical stuff from the beginning -- and today serves as our head Social Media Strategist as well. Check out his tag cloud on this blog -- that will give you a feel for what he writes about all the time. I think you'll enjoy following his work.
• 5th: The blog, "Social Media Musings."  It is written by EMC's Jamie Pappas, Len's parter in social media strategy and the woman who was chief community manager and chief Road Show Pitch Person at every staff meeting at EMCin the early 2.0 days doing show & tell on how this social network thing worked. Jamie is in the top professional organizations and can give you the inside scoop on worthy and waste-of-time things to consider as you move forward.
• 6th:  My blog, "Building and Branding Careers, Culture and Cool."  Hardly  a post goes by here where I don't reference the positive transformation evidence at play in cultures, careers, brands, and business strategy as a result of the behavior models and tools in our 2.0 world.  This blog provides case studies and stories, along with strategy and reports on our latest thinking with regard to engaging people and building brands.

And for those individuals who are still on the journey of understanding how this all works and getting personally comfortable with the tools and the career benefits, I recommend these resources:

• 7th:  The blog, "Community and Social Media," by Chris Brogan. Chris offers a ton of free eBooks, a free newsletter and a very friendly blogging style which taught me a lot. Now he's a top consultant, and author in this area as well.
• 8th:  The "blog roll" of every one of the above blogs.  This is generally a list, listed on the right or left rail of the blog, of the favorite blogs these authors read. Poke around in there. See who these people are following.
• 9th:  Twitter. Sign up and then leverage Twitter Lists or Twitter Search and type in words like "Social Media."  Follow the pre-populated lists of people who write about that subject.  Save Twitter, or a more robust version like "Tweet Deck" on your desktop.  Visit it a couple times a day -- like when you need a stretch from email.  See what content the gurus in this space are attaching, forwarding, and talking about.  You'll be up-to-the minute in no time!  
• 10th:  Google Reader. This is your new daily newspaper and on-line mentor for how this world works. You pop all these blogs onto this one space, set it as your home page, and experience the learning start to happen!  If you have an internet-enabled mobile device, be sure to bookmark your Google reader so you can have your "newspaper" with you where ever you go!

Okay, that's 10 Free Resources that will get you smart in no time. I'm talking about 30-60 days if you dedicate just a little bit of time each day on your Google Reader (it will also suggest blogs to you as well, based on who and what you show an interest in!), and on your Tweet Deck. You'll learn even faster if you join the discussions, post a comment and -- horrors -- start a blog.

For those who have a decent Gen Y dynamic at play in your company, here's a bonus:

• #11:  Personal Branding Blog.  Get in the head of the 2.0 movement via this blog's 20-something leader, author, speaker, and career counselor, Dan Schawbel. Dan has been my reverse mentor and chief cheerleader in gaining a hands-on experience in this space.  I encourage you to get a reverse mentor of your own (someone of any age or rank who gets excited about this subject and clearly seems to 'get it.') Until you get that person, subscribe to Dan's blog. It is loaded with fresh research and insights and shows you how this 2.0 world can put a brand, including a personal brand, on steroids.

-------------------- Talk Back -------------------------

What are your favorite free resources?

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson.com

Haiti Relief: Company's Employees and Communities Tweet and Click Into Action; Social Media and Engaged Employees Help Get the Word Out

9 Hours. 650 employees. 156,000 dollars.

In the course of just 9 hours at the tail end of a busy week, 650 EMC employees logged onto a Red Cross donation site to do their part today. What prompted their activity TODAY?  A company email at 8:03 am (see below), followed the full engagement of many,  leveraging the speed, power and viral influence of Twitter.   The result, only 9 hours later?  One hundred and fifty-six thousand more dollars for Haiti relief, and an unknown number of proud employees, customers, company watchers, and Haiti-concerned.

While the official EMC email, which offered a compelling prompt, an easy mechanism to donate, and a company pledge to match donations came out early this morning, I got the sense of the employee response, and that of the greater community of EMC followers, by observing Twitter starting around 10am, and throughout the day.  Here are a few examples:

Note this Tweet, where @the_super_dave adds to EMC employee @storageanarachy's tweet:  "Proud to be a customer!"

 

By 11:00, Tweets on my column dedicated news at EMC were streaming in like raindrops:

Late this afternoon, the tweets were still rolling in, like this from employee @jakeroz

Here is the EMC Community Involvement email which started the ball rolling:

 

EMCers, and EMC in total, have a strong track record of jumping in to help in such situations. I'll never forget, some 18 years ago, when a man who worked on our manufacturing floor had his house burn down.  A note when out to all EMCers, and checks (on-line transactions had yet to be invented!) from employees who never met this person  started pouring in from around the country, and around the world. 

The stories of EMCers efforts in the midst of Hurricane Katrina, the Tsunami, and the 9-11attacks are beyond words -- their time and love far exceeding the $3 million or so in dollars EMC and EMCers have donated in such times of need.

2009 changed the game of caring though.  Social media, paired with engaged employees and an engaged company community on Twitter and Facebook, helped give hope where there was none for Nick Glasgow and his family this past summer.  And now, it gives hope to the people of Haiti, and my personal friends the Gengels, who await word if their college-aged daughter Brittany, in Haiti for a mission, has yet to be saved.

If you haven't given a little bit of yourself or your wallet yet, please consider what you can do.

---------------- Talk Back -------------------

For the people who work at companies who discourage employee activity on social networks, consider sharing this story with them ... or talking back.  Why wouldn't a company want this type of engagement to happen? Really. I don't know.

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson

Employee Engagement and Recognition: Case Study

Every Employee Satisfaction and Motivation survey I see indicates people want more recognition. 

 

Execs and managers scratch their heads, wondering what else they could do.

Why don't the current, seemingly abundant methods meet the need?

 

My theory: we leave too much on the shoulders of the executives.  Sure, they should do their part -- but they make up, what? 1% 10% 20% of a company?  What if the model was turned around?  Set the expectation that the other 99% 90% or 80% should recognize often as well! Then you will have 100% of the company involved in the recognition process, and, eventually, people will truly know, see, and hear they are making a difference on a much more frequent basis.

I believe the big breakthrough for "people management" is in the Peer Model in this Knowledge Era of the 21st Century.  Create an environment where leadership happens at every level -- and you will have more of everything you want. 

Imagine:  An individual contributor serving customers better, inventing better ways to do things, telling his peers what an awesome job they're doing ... and multiply this magical CEO dream by the number of your workforce.

Why not?

Kudos for Oracle for doing more of this new model. On their internal social network, they have a ticker running constantly called "Kudos" where anyone is welcome to recognize anyone else.  Why hide the "thanks" in an email?  Share it for all to see! 

Following is an example on how a peer effort at EMC was a 360 degree win for everyone involved -- and took no Presidential decree, or even an ounce of money, to make happen.

*****The Case Study ****

A group of folks at the company had the idea to film the inventors/employees of an industry breakthrough, which resulted in one of the most successful products at our company. The breakthrough happened over twenty years ago, and the product platform which resulted from it is still contributing millions in revenue to the company. In fact, you can likely not go a day in your life without this product somewhere storing, moving, or managing the digital bits of on-line information that make up your life. YET, it was realized, no one at the company had yet to document the story on film -- or truly recognize to a notable extent the people behind the breakthrough. 

So with that, it was decided by people who had never done this before, to set up a round table with these inventors and record it with a Flip Camera to ensure this story got captured.

Flash forward a bit.  Another individual employee, Tom Bennett, having nothing to do with PR, HR, or Marketing of any sort in his official job, let it be known to someone familiar with this "inventor story" footage that he was a movie maker/producer/editor in his spare time, and would like to help the company if there was a need for such skills.

The following short, documentary-story-telling video was edited and produced by Tom.  A company engineer by day, he was able to converse with the featured engineers in their terms to understand the truly potent segments and pull out supporting clips and collateral to help tell the story.  He did this on his own time.

The result? Recognition for inventors Mark Lippitt, Bob Solomon, Dave DesRoches, and Steve Todd -- and the contribution their breakthrough had on EMC, and the industry. ALSO:  Culture-Building. People displaying their passions, and making use of passions whether they are related to their obvious day job or not.  Oh, and, in total, making the company a much warmer, nicer place.  All for Free.  Now consider if everyone at your company felt empowered to help make this type of magic happen.  Money doesn't drive recognition. It is the environment that says, "Go ahead! You're empowered! Spread the Good News."

This film got its worldwide debut in a distribution titled, "Leadership in Action," to all 42,000 company employees spread over 85 countries.   It was released on YouTube the same day and currently boasts a viewer review of 4 stars.  :) The film and the story currently lives in the "Culture Talk" community of the company's internal social network, where people can converse with the inventors and discuss memories they shared from that pivotal point of our industry.

A few months ago, Harvard Business Review posted this article, titled, "Four Simple Ways to Make Your Employees Happier."  It seems to ring true against the backdrop of this little case study as well.

----------- Talk Back ----------------

What is your view on recognition?  Is there merit to everyone putting a little bit in the game?

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson

 

My favorite Christmas gift ... and "Return on Investment"

I received an email today from colleague Dave Spencer saying a magazine wanted to re-print one of his (older) job posts. As the post mentioned my name, Dave wanted to check that I'd be okay with it. [Sure.]

The Gift

When I clicked the link to this post, I read it again as if for the first time. I had forgotten this story. It illustrates well what Dave, and many others at EMC, have discovered and wish to see more of in the workplace of the future.  

It read like a gift.  It felt like a gift.  I can't imagine anything wrapped under my tree that would feel nicer.

Below is his post, titled with an unlikely title for a favorite Christmas gift:  

"Return on Investment"
October 14, 2008

ROI is a magic code word in business.  It stands for the ruthless bean-counters who ask one simple question in response to any proposal.  What will I gain if I do it?

As I and others have written, EMC is investing in social media, both externally and internally.  While it’s easy to quantify that investment, defining the return can be a bit harder.  How do you measure the brand perception among decision makers?  Among potential new hires?  Among employees?  Or, from my standpoint, how do you know if your workforce is more engaged, more involved, and more connected?

I’d like to share a story from last week.  I received an email in the morning asking if I’d be willing to participate in a half-hour conference call with Polly Pearson and a few others.  The subject was nothing I thought I’d be able to contribute on; she was in the middle of planning an event dedicated to the 2008 Distinguished Engineers and Fellows at EMC’s annual Innovation Conference.  Since I haven’t been involved in this conference I wasn’t sure what help I would be, but I said I’d participate.

That afternoon, I was on the phone with Polly and a couple other people from Engineering.  It turns out she had some ideas for the event and wanted to run them by people from a product development background.  It turned into a 30-minute brainstorming session and a chance for some great unfiltered information flow between a wide variety of individuals.  I hope she left with some good feedback.

The cost for this meeting was fairly low: a half-hour of time on the phone.  But she would not have met any of the people on the call were it not for EMC’s investment in building a more connected workforce.  How do you measure that ROI?

Taking it a step further, think of the benefit this had for the people from Engineering who were on the call.  It was the last meeting of the week for me, and it sent me home in a great mood.  People want to be listened to, and love being asked questions.  Talk about feeling valued! But I would never have been on that call except for the investment I put forth into staying active and visible online, including this blog and my activity on our internal platform.  I have invested quite a bit, and again have trouble defining any dollar value for the return.

But the return is real.  It’s as real as the investment.  If you’re counting dollars at your company and wondering how to justify it, just imagine hearing stories like this on a regular basis.  Imagine it not just for event-planning but product design, marketing campaigns, and business policies.  Imagine your workforce feeling that engaged (see this post for an advanced review of a book on the subject which talks about EMC’s efforts in the area).  And if you’re looking at your individual effort and wondering how you can justify adding this sort of activity to your work week, try to imagine how it feels to be involved in activities like this and wonder why you’d be willing to settle for letting other people have all the fun."

**************************************************************************************

Thanks, Dave, for taking part in the fun and leading the way for others to join as well. 

Merry Christmas.

Leadership in Action in the "Collaboration & Connection" Culture

Just published the second edition of an "execs unplugged," Reality TV sort of internal communication. It is both human, and connected to the business. It introduces leaders as people, discussing what is on their minds and answering questions tossed out on subjects such as strategy, new products, culture, leadership philosophy, and neat things on the bookshelves and walls in their offices.

[PHOTO: The landing page in EMC's internal collaboration network where the new videos in the Leadership in Action series are posted.]

Some highlights for me of benefits, in a BEFORE and AFTER perspective, on how employees would get certain information.

BEFORE:     

• Read emails and docs which do not convey passion, and which rarely reflect "personal" sentiments or inflection
• Sit through hour-long Webcasts, Videos, and Powerpoints ... and be on the watch for the relevant parts
• Read content designed primarily for external audiences, such as Analysts, Journalists or Customers
• Only the elite few get 1x1, relaxed or "casual" time with the top leaders of the company; few employees see the the execs as just people.
• Generally takes "handler(s)" to write/edit and help get the documents, powerpoints, etc., "just right."
• Takes time and cycles of many.

AFTER:

• Watch content which conveys passion and emotion, and includes the human element of the leader behind the words.
• The content comes right from the source.  No handlers altering words.
• Content comes in bite sized pieces -- an average of 4 minutes -- clearly tagged, categorized, and searchable.
• Content delivered with the employee audience in mind -- more candid and applicable.
• Every employee now gets personal-feeling time and perspective from the top leaders of the company.
• More, and better chances of people connecting with the content, the people and the strategy of the company.
• Quick. Streamlined.

[PHOTO: The "document" containing a description of the video, the video -- which automatically runs when you open the document, and tags for future search. Below this screen shot, people can rate and comment on the video. The video resides behind the firewall at EMC (not on YouTube).]

Screen shots from one of the videos, where Brian Gallagher, our SVP of Symmetrix Platform Engineering, shows us around his office, his lab, and "The Walls of EMC Patents."

Other benefits: 

When deployed on an internal social network, people can rate the material and let you know through eyeballs and comments which content hits the mark, and which doesn't. Readership stats are viewable by all in real-time.  Think back to the hard-copy newsletter (which has many benefits, granted.)  Who knew what articles were read and which hit the mark? Who knew what the total readership was ... for real?

This video/TV experience doesn't replace the other business communication norms -- it adds options. People learn and work in different ways. For some, reading documents is the way they best get information. For others, audio/visual is optimal.  

So, how did EMC's employees respond to this newer form of communication on company "people, business, and culture?"  In less than one business day, the 8 video clips provided had over 2,000 collective views and employees gave the compilation 4.5 stars out of a maximum rating of 5.

 

What did it take to produce them?

Essentially:  Some guts to ask the execs to do it. A flip camera, mini tripod, about 10 - 20 minutes of my time for each interview, about 10-20 minutes of the exec's time for his/her interview, some editing time to cut the content down to the most compelling 2-5 minute takes (thank you Brandi Hamlin!), some upload time to the collaboration network (thank you Thom Lytle!) to get it into a fancy looking table with faces and hyper links to all the individual documents, an old fashioned email to the employees, together with a banner on our employee intranet (thank you Toni DeVanna and Emilie Greene!), letting everyone know about the new content.

--------------- Talk Back ------------------

What do you think about the model?

Are any other companies doing this? I'd love to learn from them how to do it better.

Any snags? 

Well, I still need to get these accessible via employee mobile devices (that's coming soon), audio quality varies if you're listening in certain environments (older PCs I think), it could use a little more program management than we've been giving it -- to ensure it gets on execs schedules, that we don't inundate the lucky video editor with 8 videos to edit within a 1-2 day window (on top of her "real" day job), and so we can start producing these on predictable dates (like the first Tuesday of every month.) It could also probably use some filming technique tips for me -- like should the interviewer always be off camera, or be included like they do on 60 Minutes?  ... and likely more. 

Like social media, it also sounds more free and easy than that ultimately is. The work involved, while less, is still a bit of work. In social media, you have community managers that come with certain skill sets you may or may not have had clearly identified in pre-2.0 jobs and job descriptions. When launching this type of "real-and-raw-video-oriented-communication," it too takes some different behaviors, and a chunk of time that you did not have previously allocated.

But it is fun!  And the feedback from the people, telling you to keep doing it and how it saved them time, helped them motivate others,  and made them feel more connected and "plugged in" to what is going on tells me the pivot is worth it.

What do you think could make this model better?

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson

Marcus Buckingham, Empowerment, Oprah, Women, and "So What"

In a couple hours I'll head into Boston to see Marcus Buckingham speak at the Mass Woman's Conf. Marcus is the former Gallup researcher who found that people and teams do better work when they spend energy doing what they do best, rather than working on improving weaknesses. (I became familiar with his work for the first time during one of my maternity leaves, 2002 I think. Then I saw him speak at an EMC Leadership event a couple years ago where I fell in true, intellectual lust with the concept - especially as it was backed up by so much compelling data!) Since then, I've been reading more on the concept in Gallup world, and applying the wisdom in my job at EMC.

[Image: Marcus Buckingham and Oprah Winfrey] 

Marcus has now been on Oprah, and realized, it seems, there was a jackpot waiting in what might be called the "women's empowerment market." He just wrote a book targeted to women, with notable data that could capture anyone's attention, and now is a touring phenom at Women's conferences. I think I heard there will be 5,000 women expected today, alone, in Boston.

Hey Marcus! I think we should collaborate! I have a growing list of real world case studies displaying the beauty of this concept in action within a FORTUNE 200 company. (guess which?!) It is this list of what's happened over the last year alone that actually got me jumping out of bed tonight at the ripe hour of oh-dark-thirty -- I've got to share it on the blog. Crazy good. All free, or near free, to deploy for the company. All delicious for the people involved.

"So what," you might say?  Here's the so what:  Pumped up people pump up good vibes in those around them -- allowing everyone to do better work. Better work from passionate people pumps up prospects and customers, who pump up revenue, profit and ultimately, shareholder value!  This isn't just about the cuddles, it is about unleashing goodness for both people and business!

So while I remain disappointed with the fact that the world apparently still needs women's conferences and empowerment pitches for women in business at this state in the game (women are, as we know, more educated and remain the majority of the population!), I can see the beauty of unleashing more wonder, and enhanced business results by indoctrinating and unleashing the legions of ready and willing business women in the world with the power of this information. 

--Polly
http://www.pollypearson.com; @pollypearson

Employee Engagement and Employment Branding Suddenly Hot Business Subjects

When did employment branding and employee engagementget so hot?

This week Harvard called, again. A business school prof there is about to release a report on the best practices ... and potentially issue some journal cases ... and just started writing a book on the subject -- with enthusiasm for Web 2.0 models.

Harvard Business Press is currently in the midst of a global release of a book by Sylvia Ann Hewlett called "Top Talent" where she identifies strategies to engage and retain talent -- again featuring Web 2.0 models. 

There are Ning and LinkedIn communities dedicated to the subject of Employment Branding, with sub-communities fully dedicated to social media models, and dozens of blogs.

And let's not forget the conferences! I get approached to speak at a conference or on a webcast on the subject of social media and employment branding or employee engagement about once a week.

Of course, the headhunters are on this too. They are calling as FORTUNE 500 companies increasingly realize they'll be at a competitive disadvantage if they don't spend some attention on both the genuine culture and climate inside their company -- as well as the external perception of their company as a place to work.

[All in an economic backdrop mind you where it isn't too hard to find great talent.]

Who are the people fanning the flames behind this trend?  Not necessarily human resources folks. They are by and large business people first.  Former Wall Street folks (I suppose I could put myself into that bucket), former Marketing folks (I could fit that bucket as well), Personal Brand speakers, Career Coaches, Reporters, and yes, some bold and forward-thinking HR people (been there too).

The headhunters are actually in a bad way on this one.  Companies don't know if they want someone from HR or Marketing to head up this initiative.  

• HR people don't think, generally, in brand and promotion terms. They also generally like the world of command and control: policies, rules, methods for communicating to employees.
• Marketing people have never, in general, given HR the time of day.  They've been focused on the outside influencers -- media, analysts, top customers -- and toss table scraps (relatively speaking in resource terms) to the internal audience.
• Ad Agencies?  Not so much. They're largely still in advertising mode -- reach and frequency buying. Posters and mugs for internal engagement. Most are racing to figure out this web 2.0 thing at the same speed and bewilderment as most companies.
• What about the HR firms? The folks who focus on internal training, systems, compensation schemes to align strategies with action?  Haven't been impressed yet -- and man, they ask for a lot of money, and even more time, to even make a dent in improving your standing in employee engagement and being a true company of choice.

Oh, and let's not forget the normal Myers-Briggs make up of people in business.  Tags such as "Thinking and Judging" come up most often.  The "Feelers" are few and far between.  And yet, research shows that it is the emotional connection that drives passion, creativity, and over-performance from a workforce and in a company's business results.

Who / What Org is best at approaching this subject?

 

I think we at EMC stumbled on a cool formula by luck. 

Today, we have a collaborative team who comes together in a fabric, cooperative, approach. Among us there is the Office for Talent within HR; executive and internal communication within Marketing; creative services and on-line platform group within Marketing; our global Centers of Excellence who are part of nearly every business org at the company; IT; PR; our organically grown brand ambassadors/bloggers; and my small operation known as the Employment Brand Office which acts as a type of glue, and prompter. 

From an executive hierarchy standpoint, the initiative was born in HR, got on the CEO's radar when he launched a goal to be a well recognized company of choice and best place to work, hung out in the social media/change agent space in Marketing for a spell, and now reports to the EVP in charge of multiple areas of company inclusive of Total Customer Experience, Quality, Marketing, Manufacturing, and Operations for our largest revenue-producing division.  

-------------------- Talk Back ------------------------

Are you noticing greater interest in this space?

Who/which org do you think best drives it?

On the vendor side, I've found a few boutique firms and social media-type people that are doing cool things, and I love the insight and energy I get from them. I also enjoy Gallup's work. What experts/vendors have you been impressed with?

-- Polly Pearson
@PollyPearson on Twitter

Quotables on Modern Management and Web 2.0

Some notable quotables from a presentation I was in this morning as they relate to workplace organizational models and the movement away from the industrial era norm of "Command and Control:"

~~

"'Policies' are for the 1% who do bad things. 'Guidelines' are for the 99% of your adult workforce population."

~~

People have said to me, "I've worked my entire career to get to the top and tell people what to do. Now you're telling me to collaborate?!"

~~

[Visuals from an EMC presentation the organizational model shifts taking place today.]

~~

"People will not raise their hand and say they do not agree unless they feel connected and engaged."

~~

"I often hear 'we can't do that at our company.' Then I bring them over to a computer and show them that their people are already doing it. Blogging, etc. Only, they're doing it outside your firewall.  Wouldn't you rather listen to them? It takes thick skin, and courage. But it can and will self-govern, and you will be better for it."

####

---  Quotes from Jack Mollen, EMC EVP of HR at an EMC Vendor Partner Summit with an audience of about 90 leaders in the health care industry. ---

####

----------------------- Talk Back ----------------------

Anything strike you?

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com

Secret Competitive Weapon: "Employee Engagement and Trust" ... Really?

An industry analyst this week cited "Employee Engagement and Trust" among a certain successful company's top  "Secret Weapons" in its competition against industry giants with mega brands.

I'm sorry, what was that? 

How can sappy HR stuff be a competitive advantage or a key take away from a tech briefing for an industry analyst who is "one of the most recognized commentators on tech?"

Because Employee Engagement and Trust is no longer the stuff of sappy HR folks.  It is the stuff of wise business people.

Gallup cites 25 - 29% of employees at any given company are engaged. I've seen other reports that go as high as 40%.  [Reminds me of a joke EMC Founder Dick Egan used to say when asked how many people worked for him. "About half," he'd reply.  Ha. Ha. Ha.  .... only it isn't really funny, is it?]

Payroll is generally a company's biggest expense.  Last I knew, at EMC, payroll was over $4 billion a year (a stat at least 2 years old).  Getting the most bang for a BILLION-plus expense, is a business basic, if you asked me.  

Engagement and Trust are the Energy Sources of THIS Century

It is time companies paid more attention to the hearts and the minds of their people. Respect them and they will respect you, your customers, and your business objectives back in spades.

We are in the knowledge era, no longer the industrial era.  Our people are the new factories.  How do we get the most productivity from the people?  (Hint: Our factories needed fuel to run.) So do people.

What fuels people in business?

Things like trust, being treated like adults, being respected, being allowed to do what they are good at, being heard, being recognized, being able and empowered to make things happen! All the studies point to the pay check as the lowest contributor to an employee's satisfaction and engagement levels.

This isn't hard, once you decide to put your mind to it. You give your kid's teacher respect, you give your next door neighbor respect. You can't give at least that same level of a trusting, adult-to-adult level relationship to people who work for your company? Who actually have a vested personal interest in your company's success? (Note: I doubt they like being called "employees." They are people who choose to work at your company, just like you do.)

When we stop treating our workforce like mis-behaving children who need to be kept in a playpen and held to the rules "OR ELSE," they just might surprise you by being happy to be there, and give their best to help you amaze your customers, and destroy your competition.

See the analyst's full note titled, "EMC's Secret Weapons Against HP and IBM," here. 

------------------------- Talk Back -----------------------

Does your company still use "us and them" language that puts employees on another, lower feeling level? 

Do you think professional adults with degrees like BAs, MBAs, and Ph.D.'s like being talked to on a lower level?

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com

The 2.0'ing of Business Behavior

When I share with people what I'm up to lately, my answers are often phrases like this:

•  "Working on 2.0'ing EMC."
•  "Building community and connections, aimed to better connect the people with the strategy."
•  "Furthering the employment brand, and the EMC culture."

Why?

• "Because people who feel engaged, respected, and connected build better relationships with customers and prospects, ... which furthers profit, revenue and shareholder value."
• "How can people salute the flag, if they don't even know the colors of the flag? (aka: How can we expect new employees, or acquired companies, to have loyalty or passion for the company and its mission, if they don't yet know the culture, and what is important to us as a company?"

With certain people I've known for a long time, especially those who see me still as the Investor Relations VP, I might also toss in this reply:

• "I feel as though I'm helping to make EMC a better place."  When I say this, I have in my mind "little" things that I've been involved with ... things that can mean a lot to the people of the company, and things that I believe our Founder would smile upon if he were still here.

*******************************************

Today I wrote a comment on a blog about "Personal Brand and the Humanization of the Corporate Brand," by Shel Israel.  His thoughts echo my own.  I then started to wonder about people arriving at this blog for the first time. Would they know what I found to be important? 

When doing a quick read of recent posts, perhaps I have been too subtle. The highlights tell a story, I hope, that ties to a transformation afoot -- one that truly values people in the workforce, and one that results in a better company for all concerned. 

Highlights from several of posts are below, starting with what might be a good umbrella post for the rest -- written on June 24th:

Culture Contrast: Harnessing the Power of People -- thoughts on the shift taking place today, and the power that can be gained for business when people are treated like adults and the environment is tweaked a bit so that they can willingly DO, and BE more. June 24th.

Culture and Innovation  --  the inverted pyramid, the shift away from command and control, and some of the benefits to be expected for both the people of a company, and the company itself. October 13th.

Work is Getting Personal -- people being people, at every level of the company, helping one another. Oct 9th.

Information to the Brain -- people connecting with one another, including on social platforms, is becoming a major factor in driving business results. This blog features some recent articles/books/happenings which with more insight on the science behind this. Oct 7th.

Learning, Innovation and Career Choices -- innovation case studies are buried in this folksy post, outlining the huge benefit to the business when people are engaged-- in this case, global voluntary innovation. Sept 30th.

EMC HR says "Yes" to doing Personal Business at Work -- executives/companies are realizing that the walls are blurring between work and home and that it no longer makes sense to try to keep people from being their own person (in addition to being an employee) while at work.Sept 24

What's New? -- consumerism, personal brands, diverse professionals as true friends, and the now humorous look on how the command & control model got started in business. Sept 17

Facebook can be an asset -- rethinking the "personal network" of Facebook to actually being an asset in "match making" of person and opportunity. Sept 10th

 Does an MBA Matter ... plus the next 6, "get a job and career tip" posts  -- a series providing tips to people if they, or someone they know is looking for a job, leveraging the insights of EMC's recruiters.  July 20th through  Sept 10th

It isn't the smart idea, it is the addition of passion and connection that bring success -- evidence of people connecting with one another in unexpected and wonderful ways, facilitating an atmosphere for future success.

Initiative, Passion and Cultural Evolution; We Run EMC -- EMCers at every level coming up with ideas and driving the business, and connections, forward.  July 8, July 10

Themes in my blog tend to come in story form. It is my hope that by reading the blog, you get introduced to some of the latest thoughts relative to the blog's banner title:  "Building and Branding Careers, Culture and Cool."  In the case of 2009, "cool" often relates to the impact of 2.0 business behavior models!

----------------------- Talk Back ---------------------

Does it make sense?

Do you see business value in this work?

-- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com

A Tipping Point for "People" at Work?

Something is going on. I feel it.

Business people, journalists and professors are suddenly eager to discuss -- for real -- "Employees" as "People."  And I'm not talking about HR-focused execs.  It is happening with, and among the BUSINESS LEADERS.  You know, those folks who care about the sale, the customers, the EPS, the share price, and about public image. 

Why do I think this?

Well, I couldn't help but notice the media, consultant, talent search, and author interest which continues to grow like snow on a windshield on a winter New England day. (Sorry about the analogy. It is getting really cold around here lately!)

Here are a few examples of some of the coverage on the work I get involved with at EMC in the realm of Employment Branding and use of Social Media / Web 2.0 behaviors and tools over the last few weeks:

*** EMC's Employment Branding Work has been featured in the following *****

Harvard Business Review and Bloomberg C-Suite:
    How EMC Maintained Morale While Cutting Costs

North Carolina State MBA Class Case Study:
    Polly Pearson Showcases EMC Social Media

FORTUNE.com, CNN Money.com:
    Watch Out LinkedIn, Facebook is Gaining on You

Human Resource Executive:
    Measuring the Value of Web 2.0

GravitySummit at Harvard University:
    EMC Case Study on Employment Branding and Social Media

**********************************

The year kicked off with a feature of EMC's work in this area in the January, 2009 book Closing the Engagement Gap, "How Great Companies Unlock Employee Potential for Superior Results."

At EMC, we have in NO WAY mastered this subject. It seems we're doing something noteworthy, however. And, clearly, the C-suite is interested!

---------------- Talk Back --------------

Have you had a tipping point encounter on this subject?

- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
http://twitter.com/pollypearson
http://twitter.com/emccareers

Career Tips, apparently by Me.

Today I was a guest at a Lunch & Learn, where people from around the company gather in a conference room over lunch to ask questions in a casual manner, and learn about someone's career.

Have you ever answered a few career-oriented questions, told a few career-oriented stories, and wondered what the audience got out of it, if anything at all?

Following is an excerpt from an email of thanks I received from one of the attendees of today's event. It recaps her take aways.

• Move around to grow your network
• The great way to grow your career is to do the job, volunteer to help others, and build relationships
• Use, read and respond to postings on EMC|One (our internal collaboration network)
• Ask for what you want from your manager - ask for the job, they aren't mind readers
• Earn your seat at every table - don't be shy, share your ideas and be passionate
• Ask your manager for their goal list, and help them accomplish their goals
• When you need help from a friend or mentor on something important to you, don’t include them on the email but instead talk to them on the side
• Characteristics that managers look for: No whining, Getting things done, Positive attitude, Proposed solutions.

I loved to see that so many people came to today's Lunch & Learn -- and that they represented so many functions at EMC.  People joined from sales, engineering, alliances, marketing, and more. Humbling. (Thank you.)

Yesterday, EMC held our Speed Coaching event (sort of like Speed Dating, but on career coaching.)  I was delayed and didn't end up coaching -- but I did check out the room. It was like a beehive on a concert sound system. The place was packed (and obviously buzzing!)  I ran into EMC's Distinguished Engineer, Steve Todd, afterward.  He was glowing and said it was the most fun he'd had all week.  I asked him was his career tip was. His reply?

"You know, my usual.  Get your job done well and early, and then do whatever you like." (Said with a giant smile, and a nodding head.)

---------------------- Talk Back -----------------------

If you happened to be in the room for today's Lunch & Learn or yesterday's Speed Coaching, what tips struck a note with you?  Please share. Spread the wisdom.

Thanks!

- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com

It isn't the Smart Idea. It is the addition of "Passion," + "Connections," that Bring Success.

I spent the day yesterday with a room filled with 200-300 really smart people. Not just a little smart, but truly fabulously smart.  There were finalists from our global innovation idea contest, distinguished engineers (our elite force), a fellow (turbo-elite), a few authors, a couple of CEOs, and in total, hand-selected, innovation-minded representatives from every major functional area at the company. 

[PHOTO:  Three of EMC's tech elite Distinguished Engineers. Helen Raizen, Peter Madany, Dan Cobb. Taken during the Innovation Conference by talented EMCer, David Elmes.]

If that wasn't intimidating enough, I was asked to present.  It was all fine and good until the morning of the event when I told my 8th grader why I was rushing off so early. "My goodness," I thought to myself, "what have I done?!"

In my last blog, I shared a bit of what I discussed. The fun part of the presentation, for me, was when others joined me on the stage to share a story of something they witnessed at the company by way of an innovation. I asked them to highlight the ingredients that came after someone having "a great idea" -- the "Passion" and working toward "Success" parts.

Sometimes you have to be a bit of a Pest

The first story to be shared came from a non-engineer, Tom Broderick, a Director at EMC, involved with Business strategy and our global Centers of Excellence. His story was about a radically new pricing strategy for EMC in 2003 (think depth of recession.)  He said the team presenting this idea was shot down 2 or 3 times by the executive committee at the company. Each time, they tweaked the plan, build their network of supporters, and essentially, refused to give up. Their conviction, passion, and yes, smart work sold the strategy.  The result? It transformed the industry pricing model and, looking at EMC's dramatic rise in revenue from 2003 - 2008 (roughly $6 billion to $15 Billion!), I'd say it had an impact on the company, too.

Sometimes you have to be Master Networker

The second story to be shared came from EMC technology strategist, Barry Burke.  He couldn't list just one innovation idea he witnessed. He recited a long list of mainstream products at EMC which would never would have seen the light of day had it not been for .... "the idea generator forgetting it was his/her idea and making it the idea and passion of others."  He said it was the network of believers that drove those ideas over the finish line and into the giant product success circle that they live in today.

Sometimes you have to put yourself out on a limb in the interest of making it great

A third story came from an engineer/manager, Dave Spencer, about a work in process.  He told of an engineering team working on a stealth product. One of the members of the team suspected that something wasn't quite right and could be better.  He confided in a senior member of an engineering team not associated the project.  This senior person had a full plate, and was on an aggressive schedule managing another product release. But, in true EMC fashion, he listened, thought about it, and he, too, suspected there could be a better way.  Tireless work began to unfold in parallel. The work is still in play. We don't know how it will end.  One definition of success for sure is the opinion of the senior engineer. He said he hasn't had this much fun at work in years!!

---------- Oh that Feeling When Someone Connects -------

A highlight for me was when a senior engineer and finalist of the global innovation idea contest quoted my presentation during he panel he sat on.  He said we need more of the culture I discussed -- one filled with passion and connections. As a global and wide-reaching company it is more important than ever that we support one another, know what one another is working on to move FASTER!  He also pointed to the opportunity to eliminate waste from projects that get done, that others don't know about and ultimately get under-utilized.

----------------------- A surprise! -----------------------

Another highlight was meeting EMCer David Elmes, who works in API support for our eRoom product.  He told me he was an English major and we started talking about EMC ONE, our internal collaboration network, and how we found some photographers there recently. Ends up he, too, is a professional photographer. He asked if he could take some photos.  Ends up, he took the one at the top of this blog and many more amazing shots. He took this one of me too ...

An amazing day.  Lots of connections and inspiration, and family building.  At the cocktail hour that followed the day there was even more!

... Check out Stu Miniman's blog for a great recap and a video of the conversations at the bar!

------------------- Talk Back ---------------------------

Personal connections, uber smart people/engineers.  Do they mix?

Is more needed, or is everything just fine thank you?

Culture and Innovation

Tomorrow I am presenting on Culture & Innovation to the Massachusetts arm of EMC's annual Innovation Conference and Idea Showcase.

My message will be on the inversion of the command & control pyramid. The upside down version, if you will, invites ideas and interaction from every member of the company community to join with those at generated at the classic "top" of the company.

In a word, we all get "More."

More insights

More ideas

More context

More bullet-proofing

More engagement

More people "working for the cause"

More passion

More fun

More results!!

I recall the wisdom of EMC's founding father, Dick Egan, in what today we consider the essential ingredients of our culture:  Innovation, Passion and Success.

Dick used to "try to look beyond" the fact that some people had a ton of degrees or expressed expertise in a particular area.  His belief that if people were smart and passionate and delivered results, THEN they were worthy.  Often times, if a person was "only" smart, or "only" offered expertise in a particular area, it wasn't enough.  At the pace of a business like this, you need smart people who can adapt on a dime and always be on the look out for a break-through way to make things happen.  And that STILL wasn't enough.  You needed people who had the passion to MAKE IT HAPPEN!

Example: back in the early days of the 1990s, Dick set a goal of beating IBM in the IBM mainframe storage market.  This was a CRAZY idea!  They called it the "IBM Mainframe Storage Market" because IBM invented it, and owned more than 80% market share.  When Dick came up with this idea, paired with an innovation that stood a fraction of a chance, his PASSION for the goal came in spades.  His passion led the motivation of the entire workforce.  We worked non-stop and celebrated every hair-brained idea, and every sale we came up with to make it happen.  In less than 5 years, little no-name EMC beat IBM. They've been in our rear view mirror ever since in that market (and then some!)

And that's just one example.It was my first one and I lived it intimately.  It forever changed my professional life and my vision of what success could look and feel like.

Today, EMC is moving rapidly toward to the Inverted Pyramid, the one where everyone can have an idea, be passionate about it and facilitate success.  We are transitioning from the world of one spiritual leader/mentor/motivator in a company to Many -- all joined by community, customers, and a common goal. This is our 2009 Pyramid, reflective of the faces behind the best ideas from the more than 1,400 submitted by EMCers in 19 countries this past few months.

The submitted ideas were voted on -- promoted or demoted -- by the people of the company inside of our internal social network, EMC|ONE.  The result of one such vote, the "People's Choice" award, will be shared tomorrow, along with what the CTO office deemed to be the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners.

Here's a short clip of Dr. Burt Kaliski, from our CTO's office. Burt discusses how the idea contest and conference was coordinated, with a few stats and stunners.

--------------------- Talk Back -------------------

What do you think of this model? 

I was delighted to see the writings and thoughts of Gary Hamel, "the world's most influential business thinker" according to the Wall Street Journal, as he shared these views as well.

Let me know if you've experienced a benefit from an inverted way of getting business results. 

-- Polly Pearson

Work is Getting Personal. Calling all humans!

Who Turned the Tables?

Employees Now Setting the Agenda with Execs in Coaching Forums

 

[PHOTO: EMCers taken during a random day in the life this past year.]

Two cool things just happened.

ONE:

I was just briefed on an event where the organizers are ditching the usual podium speech, where one exec (or "expert") feels like the celebrity, and shares what s/he believes is good information -- leaving, as these types of presentations generally do, the audience to consider how one or more of these information nuggets might help their particular situation.

In this use case, I love that the organizers are turning the tables in favor of giving celebrity-level love to the individual people in the audience.  VALUE!

What's the event?  A "personal," 1x1 speed coaching program, designed by the people of EMC, for the people of EMC. It will take place later this month in multiple US locations. It has full executive sponsorship and participation. All the people had to do to get it done was to ask.

What will it be like?

Envision 50 people getting personally-relevant coaching from multiple company executives in a spirited "speed dating" format. That is, in about an hour, these 50 individual employees be able to ask their questions, of importance to their particular goals or situation, in one-on-one fashion to three different execs. Chances are, these people would not have had the opportunity, or the personal comfort level, to ask such questions of these execs in the course of their normal business routine.

Who put this together? The people in EMC's Black Employee Affinity Group. Those at EMC can learn more and register for the event here.

But Wait! There's More!

They're even going to leverage EMC's internal collaboration network, EMC|ONE to document the event, share tips, take aways, and provide a repeatable "kit" so that the event's model could be replicated anywhere in the world by any person who chooses to put it together.

TWO:

I just got an invite in my mailbox that, once again, puts the people of the company in the drivers seat in a very personal way.

A group of people in EMC's marketing group (graduates of EMC's college hire "Marketing Leadership Development Program") decided to launch a "Lunch & Learn" series with EMC executives.  They limit the amount of the people in the room to just those who can comfortably sit around a conference room table.  They invite execs in to share their story, and to take questions from the other folks in the room, with a focus on the person and the personal. No Powerpoint. No product, organizational, or other real-time business content required. The focus is on the person, their careers, and knowledge exchange of relevance to the particular people in the room on that day.

Yeah, but what executives do the people get to have lunch with?  A pretty good variety of folks, if you asked me. The invite that was just sent out has

 

[Photos:  Brian, Art, Rich, Polly]

• a division President (of our uber-cool Security biz, RSA): Art Coviello
• two senior vice presidents in engineering who oversee the innovation within multi-billion dollar product lines, Brian Gallagher and Rich Napolitano
• and me

Those who work at EMC, can connect with the Lunch & Learn program, sign up for these events and be in the know about future L&L's here.

Revolutionary?  No. Personal, yes. Cool, I think so. 

Both events leverage EMC's internal collaboration network, and enable those who attended to share stories and insights relevant to their personal worlds. 

------------------------Talk Back----------------------------

Are you getting personal career attention?

Are you thinking of ways to make that happen?

Career Growth and Development is always at, or near the top of the chart on desired factors by employees. In times of recession, employee views of career development tend to go down (or plummet!). I thought these were to interesting, free, and relatively easy ideas to put in play that can really be of value to the people. Everyone could use more love and attention, especially in times like these!

- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
http://twitter.com/pollypearson
http://twitter.com/emccareers
http://www.emcfacebook.com

Information to the Brain: Interesting Reads

My kids must be getting older and more self-sufficient ... or maybe it is the bite-sized morsels found with social media communication that can squeeze themselves in the middle of every aspect of every day, but I seem to be reading more lately.

What has stood out in the last week or so?

Articles that focus on speeding information into brains, on connecting, on unleashing human power.

PEOPLE CONNECTION for BUSINESS:  New Research on Happiness and Social Networks, as found on WIRED in this featured article, "The Buddy System: How Medical Data Revealed Secret to Health & Happiness."

Sidebar: It was fun reading that this discovery was based on data gathered from people in a town just down the road from my house. I read this feature while sitting in my new gazebo (aka my second house) on a Sunday afternoon, amidst the sounds of nature.

[Illustration: Crop of WIRED's feature article on Happiness and Social Networks]

PEOPLE CONNECTING FOR BUSINESS: The modern thoughts on management models for business success by Gary Hamel as found in the Tweetstream coming out of the World Business Forum today. Here's an example of some of his thoughts (which I share), found in this FastCompany post, "HAMEL: Time for Management 2.0."

Sidebar:   I found this as I wanted to stay up on a big day for two EMCers who were invited to be official bloggers at the World Business Forum, @SteveTodd and @Stu.

[PHOTO: EMC Distinguished Engineer Steve Todd and Chief Technologist Stuart Miniman have some fun on stage at Radio City Hall while blogging on behalf of the World Business Forum]

 

PEOPLE CONNECTION FOR BUSINESS:  A book on science, leadership, the practice of management, and building a connection culture to elevate business performance.  "Fired Up or Burned Out" by Michael Stallard.

Sidebar:  I read this on a train to NYC this week. (I had my blackberry going and this book open, reading both at the same time. Every time there was a delay retrieving a web  page on my mobile, I'd get in another few pages in on this great book.  Made for smooth, latency-free brain food!) Michael kindly gave me this book months ago. I'm kicking myself for not reading it sooner!!

 

CONNECTING WITH PEOPLE FOR BUSINESS:  New Research is out on how the brain works and how to have better Powerpoint connections to connect with audiences. The info is covered in this terrific post, "New evidence bullet-points don't work" on the blog, "Speaking about Presenting."

Sidebar:  I read this while looking at what has become my micro-RSS feed -- a Twitter column of my favorite thinkers.  This article was shared by an EMCer who lives in the field of technical education, and studies human behavior (that's you @GMinks).

CONNECTING WITH PEOPLE FOR BUSINESS:  Odd coincidence, I found this CIO Magazine article, "Q&A feature with the author of 'Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs,'" on Steve's art in connecting with audiences today as well.  

Sidebar:  Found this one when viewing the thought leadership quotes coming out of the World Business Forum. One of the people covering the event, had sent this article as well.

----------------------- Talk Back -------------------

What have you found interesting of late?

Adding more to my theme, today I interviewed Pat Gelsinger, EMC's new President, and asked him what he has read recently which stood out for him.  He replied with the now famed book on connecting with people in how we communicate, "Made to Stick."

- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
http://twitter.com/pollypearson
http://twitter.com/emccareers
http://www.emcfacebook.com

Learning, Innovation and Career Choices: Does Company Size Matter?

Last night I got together with EMC's Dr. Burt Kaliski, a senior member of EMC's Office of the CTO, and a rock star in the realm of collaboration with the top minds in global academia and tech.

(It was in a meeting with Burt back in early 2007 when we were planning our first Idea Contest and Innovation Conference that the light bulb went on my head on the power of Web 2.0 collaboration. My professional life hasn't been the same since.)

As we were going over the design of the 2009 Conference, Burt talked about how the size of EMC as a company is perfect for learning and application of knowledge.  Really? I hadn't considered that. 

He compared a company of our scale to a smaller company, where he used to spend his days.  "Everyone there knows the same things," he said.  He compared our company to a much larger entity, and said something along the lines of "That company is so massive, it would be miraculous if an internal collaboration network like our own could come off the ground. Ideas and people get lost."

 Here, he tells the story through the lens of our innovation project at hand:  (turn up your system's volume, please. My error.)

Juicy stuff.  The type of thing, now that I think about it, that Steve Todd often writes about over on The Information Playground  and in his new book, Innovate with Influence.  Steve compares every new EMC invention and every new acquisition as a type of toy he gets to think about relative to what is in his toy box. What if he mixed this with that? Could that combination solve a customer problem in a new and needed way?  I get that. I just never thought of it relative to the "have nots" or "have too much" companies of the world.

Career Choices and The Toy Box

It made me think of a conversation I had over the weekend with a friend, and former EMCer. He's at  another company now. It has about 100 employees.  This former EMCer's body language slumped visibly when he told me about all the collaboration they don't do, in part, because the company is so small. Everyone knows each other, and yet at the same time, they fear sharing. It is run in a total command and control manner. New ideas need not apply.

Can you imagine having a large toy box filled with diverse ideas to play with, and then having just one toy, one idea, one color, to tinker with, all inside of a box that someone else defined?

--------------------- Talk Back ---------------------

What is your experience in innovating, learning and company size?

I thought Burt's words, and the former EMCer's words were compelling relative to the EMC experience and triangulated well with the many interviews I have done with people where I asked them, "What is inspiring or compelling about working at EMC?"  The most common answer is this: "At EMC, I get to innovate (or solve problems) every day."  THAT is what people mean when they call EMCers "Intrapreneurs."  Love that.

- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
http://twitter.com/pollypearson
http://twitter.com/emccareers
http://www.emcfacebook.com

EMC HR says "Yes" to Doing Personal Business at Work. Really?

Meet Jack Mollen, EMC's EVP of HR.  Yesterday we got together to discuss an upcoming lecture he's doing at MIT on the subject of recruiting and retaining talent. 

(He made the mistake of noticing the flipcam I brought with me to his office, which prompted me to turn it on to share some of his gems with you.)

Here's a bit of what he had to say. He covered career decisions, compensation, company culture, and touched on a sore spot for many execs:  doing personal business on company time. All in 1 minute and 28 seconds.  Check it out! 

VIDEO:  Jack Mollen, EMC EVP of HR and thought leader on Web 2.0 behavior models at work.

Jack actually has a lot of views that the old guard might find surprising. Take LinkedIn for example. I nearly stopped cold the first time I heard his view on this subject a few years ago:  Forget about banning LinkedIn on the office network! He thinks employees should be on LinkedIn.

Why on Earth would a head of HR say that?

To paraphrase, he believes that given the pace of the world today, there will be times in your career where you out-grow your company, or your company out-grows you. In learning cultures within dynamic industries in particular, needed skill sets evolve with every strategy evolution. Not everyone will be able to keep the pace.  His heart breaks for people who find themselves in that situation having no contacts or connections to the world outside. In addition, he recognizes that it helps his company's brand by having you, and your expertise be known and found by others. Not everyone poking around in LinkedIn is a recruiter.  

Your Portable, Living, Business Rolodex

Stated simply, LinkedIn isn't just for job search anymore. I see it as your portable, living, business rolodex that enables you to find your professional contacts now and forever in the future, and enables others to find you.  Those in the know are also using it as a way to get expert advice on any question imaginable, or to further their reputation as an authority on a given subject. You never know what doors could open up -- for your company and for yourself -- by being found on such a gold mine of networked professionals.

PHOTO: Lindsey Pollak, a Career-focused Networking Author, Speaker, and LinkedIn Pro

A real expert on LinkedIn is my friend, GenY guru & author, Lindsey Pollak. LinkedIn even hired her to teach others how to use it. If you're interested in investing 1 hour in your career to learn the latest, check out this free library of webcasts, where she walks you through it. Please share any tips that spoke to you in the comment section of this post. (Thanks!)

-------------------- Talk Back -------------------

What do you think?  

Should your manager see this?!

- Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
http://twitter.com/pollypearson
http://twitter.com/emccareers
http://www.emcfacebook.com

Culture Contrast: Harnessing the Power of People

A colleague emailed me this NYT article titled, "Apple's Obsession With Secrecy Grows Stronger."

It reeked of old world thinking to me. I truly hope it isn't true ... because up until reading this I've had a secret professional crush on Steve Jobs. Let's face it, he's charming and the products his vision and his team create either make you smile, or woo you with their beauty.

But wow.

Contrast the "lock it down, speak nothing, tweet nothing" culture, as depicted in this article, with what EMC has going on.

While we take confidentiality seriously, we're also moving at warp speed to the model that leverages more connections, more collaboration, more sharing, and everything else 2.0.  (Kudos to EMC leaders like Board Member, Jack Egan; Division President, Mark Lewis; HR EVP, Jack Mollen; and CTO, Jeff Nick; Marketing VP & CTO Chuck Hollis; and the influence of folks who joined us from RSA Security like Dr. Burt Kaliski, for "getting this" early on and encouraging EMC to learn new skills to unlock the business magic within 2.0 management and behavior models.)

The evolved EMC culture is a mecca for empowered Intrapreneurs, for people who like to be treated like adults, who enjoy the riches of connections and collaboration, and who have an abundance of gifts to share which, when harnessed, can fast-forward growth of nifty things like revenue, profit, markets, market share, brands, life-saving efforts, market value, awards, and customer appreciation of game-changing strategies.

Earlier today, I wrote a comment on another blog which discussed how one might position the value of a 2.0 model to companies looking for ROI.  My reply is intimately related to this discussion of workplace cultures -- and the business value of that culture model decision. It follows.

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"Yesterday I presented my thoughts on the next wave of social media to an audience of business leaders for the TARA Exchange. I found myself using the analogy of a Triangle to show the value.

 

Imagine the top of the triangle as the "normal" top down driven way of getting information out and engaging audiences.  This is the typical command-and-control world.

 

Now look at the relative size of the bottom of the triangle.  Consider the backdrop of today's global business world where things change in a flash, and companies are looking for "strategic agility" to get growth, growth and more growth.

 

Would you like to have just the precious few engaging the world with your mission -- the top?  Or everybody? Will “just the top” get you there fast enough?

 

• Entrust your people. (99% will do the right thing; they really do want to help your business rather than hurt it.)

 

• Allow them to practice these new skills.  (Try an internal social network first. Ensure that the environment is supportive, and people understand that mistakes will happen – this is good. This is the place to learn. Encourage peer mentors in these new skills.)

 

• Provide them with some guidelines. (Be genuine yet positive; Connect & Engage as well as promote; Be careful to share only 'public' information; Mentor your peers with external tools as well and look out for one another; invest your time wisely; etc.)

 

And watch them become the most powerful and engaged organic brand managers you've ever seen! They'll do it for free, willingly, on their own time even ... and have a blast as they see the needle moving as a result of their efforts! They are a new type of leader in the 2.0 world. Here, leaders emerge at every level and pay-grade … and they come with faithful followers.

 

By leveraging the other side of the triangle, everyone is working with you to achieve growth, growth and more growth.

 

Look again at your triangle. 

You know what else it represents?  Think 'Delta,' the symbol of 'Change.'"

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Thoughts?

I like to think that when the triangle is turned upside down, it really makes music ... for your shareholders, your business results, and the happiness of your really engaged people.

http://www.pollypearson.com
http://twitter.com/pollypearson

The Other Kind of "Culture" Alive and Well at EMC

Artists.

This gorgeous, living photography show is a Flickr stream populated by EMC photographers, globally. It greets me every time I log into our internal social network, EMC|ONE.

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Another art-oriented group really seems to be taking off at EMC as well.  This one is known as the "Creators, Artists and Art Lovers" group.  In this group, they encourage and celebrate one another's work via monthly "art challenges." Lately, they started a monthly personal challenge by posting an illustration for inspiration (that evolution of the idea came from an employee in India). The work created, as a result, is posted in the community for all to appreciate.

Creators, Artists, Art-Lovers Group

A place to share creative efforts or discuss them. Painting, Photography, Dance, Sculpture, Poetry, Music, Literature, Pottery/Ceramics, Fabric, etc.

Featured work within this group has included watercolors, poetry, quilts, Persian rugs, and oil painting portraits like this employee-created wonder by Ian Kabat:

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Suprising? Cool?

I think so.

Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson

Coolness and the Cash Register: New Way to Engage Employees in Strategy Execution

Yesterday I visited EMC's internal social network (EMC|ONE), and I noticed a lot of activity around a new group known as VCE -- standing for the VmWare, Cisco and EMC strategic vision involving Cloud Computing.

The VCE vision is new, and compelling, and interest in it is spreading like wild fire throughout the community of information technology buyers and beyond.  Let me stress the word "new," from the vantage point of sales reps that would be engaged in this discussion -- and the word,"compelling" from the vantage point of IT customers. 

That is the Wonderful Problem.

Customers are eager to hear more. Sales reps are being asked to discuss the strategy so customers can start planning for this new paradigm in their shops. Time is money to everyone involved ... but how do you ready your field organization and beyond to lead such new strategic discussions ... NOW!?

ENTER: The Internal Social Network.

Within this platform the experts on the strategy, in the field and in HQ, are sharing real-time updates. They're sharing tips for how a rep can engage in the discussion. Reps are offering play-by-plays for how discussions went during recent Executive Briefings between customers, VMware, Cisco, and EMC. Everyone is acknowledging concerns a rep might have to a degree you wouldn't see in a "normal" piece of communication from HQ to the field forces. (Example: no one wants to mess up.) It is all very personal feeling, very real-time, very two-way, and very helpful. It is serving to build knowledge, confidence, and lessons learned. It is genuine and honest. It is motivating!

Reality TV and Warp Speed

It is also oddly exciting (even to me, as a person who has lived in this world for years). Like watching Reality TV right before your eyes on how a company of our size and scale (3 companies, actually) charts new territory -- only now, it is at 2.0 warp speed and everyone at EMC gets a voice and a seat at the table!

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If you're inside of EMC, check it out and share your impressions on this new model. 

Outside of EMC, has your company experienced this shift?

To me, I've seen great value and benefits from the happenings inside of EMC|ONE -- but this one is special. It feels really big. It represents mega engagement from the field forces to a new degree with obvious $$$$ value.

Kudos to the EMC folks who moved to leverage this platform and share your real-time info. Wild-fire away!!

Polly Pearson 
http://www.pollypearson.com;
http://twitter.com/pollypearson

Workplace Culture: You want "Passion?" Here's 6 Times the Passion.

A colleague of mine just wrote a blog post that shows the mood flowing through a lot of this place.

I had to chuckle, then I had to stop and count the amount of times certain words were used:

"Passion" 6 Times
"Cool" 4 Times
"Amazing," "Wonderful," "Engaging," and "Success"  2(+) Times.

All in a normal-sized blog post!

Makes me recall this recent quote from another EMCer's blog:

[photo: NBC]

"Optimism Returns To The IT Professional?"

We seem to have moved beyond the doom-and-gloom life-really-sucks outlook of just a few months ago and firmly towards the newer opportunities that lie ahead for all of us.

I'm just glad so many of these IT optimists are associated with EMC -- our employees, our partners and our valued customers. 

Makes working here more fun, it does.

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Are you feeling it?

If you're not, connect with someone who is.   And, consider reading this short wonder of a book:

Shellana Henderson over at Gallup Consulting made my day last week when she sent me the book "How Full is Your Bucket? Positive Strategies for Work and Life."   It is filled with proof that moods are  contagious -- and -- the destruction that comes from lack of engagement (either positive or negative).

Actually, she sent me TWO books.  The other was "How Full is Your Bucket? For Kids."  The latter is a gorgeous and powerful children's book -- that potentially does as well, or better, than the adult book at conveying the concept.

My daughter Margo was so excited with the kids book that she brought it to school and had the teacher read it to her first grade class.  The teacher was so excited, she wrote to me and asked where she could get a copy of her own.

 

Margo's passion for the concepts in the book continue. She has sound effects she uses for when people are adding to the environment, or subtracting from the environment. She suggests time outs when someone is operating in the wrong direction.

The economy is lousy. We can get sucked in by it, or look to the opportunity within it. 

Workplace Culture: "If you can see it, do it."

Culture at EMC

About eighteen years ago, in my first week working at EMC, I asked the head of my department this question, "How do I become successful at EMC?"

I love that the answer he gave that day is still so appropriate.

He said, "If you see an opportunity to do something, ask if you can do it and chances are they'll say 'Yes.'"

An even more up-to-date version of this, thanks in large part to social media tools and EMC's 2.0 management philosophy:

"If you can see it, do it."*

There is ALWAYS opportunity to jump in and work on something here, regardless of how it fits into your official day job. 

My colleague Dave Spencer, wrote a post on this today sharing a bit of his story and other observations he had while at EMCWorld. Below is an excerpt:

"A while back I told Polly one of the things I’d tell a new (or potential) employee about EMC is that there’s always something that needs doing that isn’t being done, and that if you can find a way to do that, you’ll always have a place here.  It’s never been more true, or more easy, than it is today.  I can’t imagine this is unique to EMC, but I certainly admire the way which EMC has allowed and encouraged us to explore those opportunities."

Dave was kind enough to sit down with me a couple quarters ago to answer the question, "What inspires you about EMC?" This is one of two clips we posted to the EMC Careers channel on YouTube with his answers.You can get to know Dave a bit better and hear more on this in the short clip below. (At 1:19 he talks directly to this subject of this post.)

* The only caveat, deep in the code of the EMC Culture, is that you continue to execute your official job inclusive of meeting all your goals. Anything you wish to do on top of that is essentially an open door.

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What's your story? Are you doing things at work because you saw an opportunity and jumped in?

"How to do Social Media for Business" Case Study in Action

How EMC is leveraging Social Media at its conference, EMC World, is a great case study to observe. It must be far from perfect -- and at the same time I'll say I've never seen anything as comprehensive and engaging on this scale. There are global followers of the thousands of tweets, blogs, news clips, and videos coming from the attendees originating from 96 countries  -- interacting with the attendees as if they were there, too. And that is from the "target audience!"  The "official" content from EMC  and mainstream journalists is on top of that.  

What's been happening?

- ENGAGING COVERAGE: Our customers and other attendees have been doing the reporting on what they find noteworthy in real-time on Twitter, with a hashtag (#EMCWorld) for everyone to keep track of one another's "coverage," and in their blogs and news reports.  (One  remote observer compared it to the relative silence that comes from Live Webcasts.  Twitter engages; it is 2-way communication.  Webcasts inform, but don't engage.)

- ENGAGING COVERAGE CONTENT: Our customers, bloggers,  employees and traditional journalists are sharing the photos and video clips -- you're seeing the event in the eye of the attendee.  See this cool composite of photos they're taking over on my colleague's Len's blog. He did a search on Flickr, embedded it in his blog, and it shows up as a living photostream. In another example, an attendee turned on his flip cam during a Q&Awith CEO Joe Tucci and had it loaded into his Tweetstream moments later for everyone to see.

- ENGAGING RELATIONSHIPS:  See the blogs by my colleagues Stu, Dave and Chuck. They all remark on the sea change they're feeling and experiencing in the quality of relationships with the attendees -- due to the fact that we've been engaging all year long via our blogs and Tweets  (on top the more typical "remembering people from last year's event.")

- ENGAGED AUDIENCES:  See what this "cynical" journalist had to say about EMC's use of social media and how EMC actually listened and responded in real time to what attendees needed and wanted during the conference, thanks to microblogging over Twitter and EMC's attentiveness to it. She also mentions how following the conference on Twitter made it that much easier for her to know what was going on where. In short, it added clear value and service to her.

- COOL and ENGAGING OFFICIAL COMPANY CONTENT:  Frankly, seeing this site is what put me over the edge to write this blog.  Check out EMC's social media site for this event containing video, blogs, presentations, event news updates via @EMCWorld on Twitter and more  -- most having  a 2.0 feel -- from the official company channels. See the 1min, in-the-hallway video of Frank Hauck, EVP of most of EMC, giving you the take aways from the conference. That's cool. See also the EMCWorld 2009 site on YouTube -- filled with customer videos, EMC brand videos, and an even an EMC employee/exec rock band, RunEMC playing a tribute song to our 30th anniversary as a company (look for my cameo!).

- Infotainment!  Attendees and observers alike seem to love it! This buzz is rounding the globe.

So with my marketing and branding leverage hat on, what this engagement communication model has done is to multiply (100x?) the value of the event itself.  This is one tree that didn't fall in the forest where no one could hear it.

So what about the substance?!

Is this just a pretty bowl of marketing whipped cream?

 

I'll point you to my colleague's Chuck's blog on that one.  There Chuck reminds us that this is no marketing event. Aside from the keynotes, this conference is all about engineers presenting technology to audiences of engineers. There are over 500 EMC Engineer presenters. I don't make a habit of going to this event because frankly it isn't meant for me. It would make my head explode. They're talking in techie speak that hurts even the minds of advanced Phd's. Its like a Mensa-convention-meets-MIT on steroids.

 -- The audience for this event spans 96 countries and numbers about 7,000. After JUST 1.5 days of the show, it was reported that over 1500 tweets were sent by attendees with the hashtag #EMCWorld. As over 200 attendees joined Twitter just today at the conference, I imagine this is growing exponentially as well. --

Kudos to everyone at EMC who put together what is clearly such a fine, well-received, and valued event.

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What else did you notice in this case study?

This is one where new examples and value statements will continue to occur to me and everyone else who watched this study evolve for months to come.

And heck, the show isn't even half over yet.

Employment Branding and Culture Building: How to Double the Effect

"Emotions are Contagious. Your Mood Matters."

At the Simmons Leadership Conference a week or so ago I heard Annie McKee, author of "Becoming a Resonant Leader" speak. Wow. (See her, and read her books, if you ever get a chance.) 

In her presentation, she mentioned that it was recently discovered that we have in our brains, "Mirror Neurons."  (According to Wikipedia, "Some scientists consider mirror neurons one of the most important findings of neuroscience in the last decade.") These neurons offer evidence that we're physiologically tuned to pick up others emotions. Further, she said, certain emotions will shut down idea generation and creativity, and others will attract it.

An angry boss stomping toward your office will put you on high alert, for example. When this happens, you will get in "lock down," or safety mode. Idea generation and creativity shut down.  (An animal survival mechanism.)

On the flip side, when emotions such as hope, joy, compassion and excitement are exhibited, you are in an environment ripe for idea generation and innovation.

So how does this relate to Employment Branding and Culture Building?

Ask yourself what others might be mirroring in your environment. Are you creating environments where you could get two-times the goodness? Or two-times the bad?

See this post written by EMC's Dave Spencer today to get a real-time case study on a positive mirror effect and how this relates to building culture.  -- There is a ripple effect when a person says "yes," and when s/he experiences positive energy. --

Mirror Neurons bring the Gandhi quote to life, "Be the Change You Wish to See."

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Following is my tweet stream capturing take aways from this Annie McKee presentation if you're in the mood for more.

 

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What do you think?

Can you see how a positive culture, tone, program, or person could be contagious?

Can you see how it doesn't have to cost any money?

I was at an event over the weekend with a family friend in the banking industry. He shared how poorly his company handled the tough subjects of pay cuts and layoffs. Clearly, these are terrible subjects.  Then, I considered how well EMC handled the same subjects a couple weeks ago. Sure no one liked the news of sacrifices, but we understood it. The company started with listening and when the time came to share the bad news, it led with empathy and the desire to save jobs and keep the family in-tact.   The employee response? Applause.

Here are other case study blogs on the power of these mirror neurons on culture building -- and how anyone and everyone in a company can add to the culture by taking the time to share the positive: Information Playground, "I'm Engaged!,"  "Confessions of an eBiz Junkie: Culture is Cool at EMC."

Other *free* options for culture building are listed in Annie's comments: "listening, caring and helping." 

Branding & Employee Engagement: Employees as Authors

 

An Environment

That Enables

Employees to Become Authors

"Speaks Volumes."

 

A few days ago I was on the phone with an editor  from BusinessWeek about the book published by EMC and written by 96 employees named, "The Working Mother Experience." 

She made a quick but assertive remark, "You'll have to update your profiles now to include the word, "author!"

Author?  Humm. 

How cool is that?  96 employees just became "Authors."

Today, it happened again. 40 EMC employees wrote a "definitive reference book" which was published with EMC's logo and blessing called "Information Storage and Management." This one is structured to be a college text book and reference guide for industry professionals.

Both books have accompanying web 2.0 properties.

The books -- both quite different -- occurred serendipitously, with no orchestration between them. 

They also have many strategic and similar attributes. They:

• Elevate EMC's brand. By merely existing, they speak to our values and culture as a company.
• Enhance the relationships we can have as a company with current and potentially new connections such as employees, customers, partners, professors, and informal influencers.
• Act as a sign of respect and recognition on behalf of the company to the Authors.
• Elevate the Personal Brands, as well as the sense of pride and accomplishment of everyone associated with writing and producing the books.
• Stretch the skills of our people and our company (we've never published books before!).
• and likely will ... meet the business case each advocate came up with when pitching the idea to his/her business unit or executive sponsor.

How cool is that?

 

This, to me, looks like the new face of branding. One that is experiential and participatory. One that has soul and is reflective of genuine people, passions and intellect. One that is not made on Madison Ave or in a PR person's office.

And unlike most ads or news releases produced by some very important and exclusive entity, you'll find regular folks who have a relationship with the company proudly telling and broadcasting the news about EMC's new books. They're telling their friends, neighbors, families and business associates. They're blogging about it, and tweeting about it.  The reach is far and wide and true.

How Cool is That?

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Do you see potential brand and employee engagement benefits by having a company publish books by employees?

What about the same idea, on a smaller scale -- having the company be okay with employee participation on social networks in a brand-supportive manner?

The Relevance of New Fortune 500 Rankings and other Cool Recognition

I like EMC's upgrade on the FORTUNE 500 list!  By jumping from #201 to  #172, EMC is now "A FORTUNE 200 Company." Nice ring!

In related news ...

Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal ran an article on FORTUNE 500 use of social media (inclusive of a snazzy quote by EMC's Chuck Hollis). Can you believe only 81 of the F500 have company sponsored blogs? Of those, only 23 have a company sponsored Twitter address linked to their blogs.  EMC, gladly, is in that elite list of 23.* 

Are more than 4/5ths of largest companies in America not aware of the shift to social media and blogs as a primary means of on-line communication -- now more popular than email? [See this Nielson report.] Or are their lawyers & leaders fearful of Web 2.0 to the point that they find it preferable to NOT engage the way customers and other business-generating communities wish to communicate today?

Other recognition I liked includes this NY Post article from last week on Employee Engagement. It profiles EMC's use of social media as especially beneficial for employee engagement and business value during an economic downturn.

Lastly, I don't think I ever called out Mashable ranking EMC as a Top 40 Brand on Twitter.

What's the point beyond "Hurray for EMC?"

Relevance.

The business climate is tough. In times like this you want to partner with companies that feel "safe," right?  But what made a company "safe" won't keep it safe.  All companies need to adapt. A FORTUNE 500 company that shows it can embrace new communication and engagement models -- and turn them into business leverage is a good thing. And, just maybe, such a company is also worthy of getting cozy with.

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Is it important to you that companies you depend upon (financially or otherwise) show an ability to lead, adapt, and in this case, embrace emerging communication models?

Why do you think so many FORTUNE 500s are hesitant to embrace social media as a means to engage with talent, customers, prospects, investors, and more?

*Many of our bloggers can be found on EMC.com/community where you can also find EMC's FriendFeed inclusive of our Twitter accounts  such as @EMCCareers, @EMCWorld and @EMCCorp.

Starstruck and Amazed at EMC

So I'm in the company cafeteria today and as I turn to head back to my office I see my friend Amnon -- a quiet, humble engineer with a giant smile, and a warm nature. 

Amnon waves "Hi" to me with that excited twinkle in his eye that I knew to be about the awesome launch from the Symmetrix labs this week, the Symmetrix V-Max. 

When I walk over to his lunch table to share a quick congrats I turned to my right to say hello to the man sitting with him.  I learn that this man, Haim, with a face I recognize but have not seen in a long time, is among the five original engineers on the Symmetrix platform.

I am Starstruck.

How to I describe why? These men are major contributors to a platform that has become one of the most well-known, long standing technology platforms in the industry. You can't send a text, book a flight, visit an ATM, trade a stock, make a purchase with a credit card, have a medical procedure, take a pill, or do most anything else in the course of your day without their work touching your life.

All that stuff I knew, and am used to ... and yet looking into the sparkling, proud eyes of a Symmetrix Founder, and an industry tech guru* on this week, where Symmetrix again captured the industry by storm, I was moved to my core. At that moment, I realized so much of the life I have built is largely related to the work and sacrifices these men and their colleagues have made.  

And then, call me Amazed.

On returning to my office I check my email to find a bunch of the editorial reviews on this week's Symmetrix launch. One read unlike any tech review I am used to seeing. It was written by the editor-in-chief of InfoStor, Dave Simpson. Some excerpts follow:  

Even the analyst community couldn’t resist hyperbole in covering this announcement. For example, Pund-IT Research’s Charles King and the Mesabi Group’s David Hill wrote that the Virtual Matrix Architecture and V-Max systems “are likely to incite a tectonic shift in the enterprise storage market” and that the improvements (relative to DMX-4) “range from the simply impressive to the seriously jaw-dropping.”

And, sending me agoogling, King and Hill noted that the Symmetrix V-Max systems are “based on highly integrated ‘layers,’ resulting in a delectably enterprise-class equivalent of a Sachertorte.”

In the past, every time EMC made a momentous move (say with the acquisitions of Documentum, RSA and VMware), I questioned their strategy and even predicted that some of their acquisition follies would end in failure. I was always wrong.

I quit nay-saying the Hopkinton honchos a long time ago. Sure, there are a few chinks in their armor, but they have more arrows in their quiver than a few of their competitors combined.

Wow.  Thanks Dave Simpson!

This week has been exhilarating, and it is still only Thursday.

On Monday, I got a heart-felt and personal note inclusive of reflection on his life as a working parent from EMC founder Dick Egan on hearing of our Working Mother Experience Book.  He told me to "Pass onto all the EMC working Moms (and Dads) my admiration for their outstanding work at EMC "... and of "how I am very proud of them." (He also enclosed his own self-published book of lawyer jokes -- which made me smile even more.)

On Tuesday, I saw masses of the company get engaged and rally around this new Symmetrix announcement.  And that an unprecedented 13,000 customers took part via attending a virtual world launch. Cool.

On Wednesday, I had my mailbox flooded with emails from ecstatic people who have discovered the Working Mother Experience book -- like a former EMC woman sales rep/mom from the 1980s! -- and from ecstatic executives and employees involved in the successful Symmetrix launch. I even got a visit from an engineer who said, with an exasperated smile and shaking of his head, "I'm just having so much fun!"

On Thursday, I have a casual encounter with some humble stars and read some very remarkable reviews.  

[*Amnon is so remarkable, btw, the Storage Anarchist dedicated a post to him titled, "I work with smart people" upon Amnon's receipt of an award that put him on a peer level with such tech gurus as the "fathers of" the world wide web; Netscape; Java; and the subject of analysis of computer algorithms.]

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Don't you find it weird that a person who has been with a company for almost 18 years could possibly say she is starstruck and amazed at stuff happening within her company walls? I do. I kind of can't believe it myself. It truly is weird. And I like it.

If you enjoy stories like this on brands, careers, culture and cool, consider subscribing to this blog and getting bite sized morsels by following me on Twitter (twitter.com/pollypearson)

Employee Engagement Case Study in Action: Social Media to the V-Max!

Today, I believe, could mark a milestone for the case study of Employee Engagement in the Enterprise; where employees themselves, in record dimensions, are building and branding careers, culture and cool.

Such voluntary,passionate actions from employees at every grade level can't be schemed or concocted, or even effectively paid for.    

See this Tweet that just came from fellow EMCer Dave Spencer:

davidkspencer@pollypearson What's cool is I can't imagine working at a company that didn't engage bloggers/etc like this. How far things have come.

Where the Goals of Both Company and Employees Meet:  Social Media

Currently, EMC's internal social media platform -- a fully opt-in, mostly viral platform for employees to be heard, do what they love, be intellectually stimulated ,connect and collaborate with others in alignment with our company's strategy, and most everything else "good" is being enjoyed over 4.6 million times per month. Over 50% of our employees have crossed the 2.0 chasm and are actively participating every month. 

Once employees get a hang for how this 2.0 stuff works, they tend to find "their voice and have a greater understanding of the compelling value they can bring." What happens next? Many go outside the firewall. They contribute to the global discussion about your company and your products. They support one another. They become even more engaged along the way. 

• See EMC's Community of Bloggers on EMC.com
• See EMC's posted Social Media Links on that EMC.com Community page, such as FriendFeed listing all the engagement on today's launch
• And Wow! See all the EMC folks & fanatics on Twitter  (wefollow.com/tag/emc): 8,600+!! 

Today, Barry Burke of EMC is blogging all day about a product launch that, you'll see, he's hugely passionate about (I love the bootleg video he took!) and which is also highly strategic and compelling for our company.  On his blog, he's keeping a running list of all the blogs other EMCers are writing about it. 

 

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Can you feel what is happening here?  Brand and Product Marketing fully unconnected with size of budget or number of people "officially" tied to a given job task.

Great for the CEO, shareholders, customers, and employees alike. Maybe a bit painful for competitors. Bonus!

How cool is that?