I am not an expert, guru, or master of networking, I simply love making connections. Whether it’s matching people to jobs, a colleague to a colleague, or providing people with information or resources, I truly enjoy building relationships. And any time I have an opportunity to help others expand their...

Documenting the progression of our employees’ training, performance and development is critical for managers because documentation provides independent and objective evidence of what happened or what didn’t happen. Somewhere along the way, howver,  documentation has become the way managers...

No one likes to be changed but it seems that HR and change frequently go together: The manager we counsel to change his/her abrasive management style The employees we counsel to change their work style Discussions we have about changing the organizations culture I’ve been in on discussions like the...

“Don’t be a tattle tale Johnny…you don’t want to get a reputation for telling on others all the time, do you?” – said every parent to every child. For many years we’ve been on the receiving end of well-intended programming from the adults in our lives telling...

It’s been two years this month since we launched the site. I know, can you believe it has been two years? Time flies! Help us celebrate our anniversary by sharing with others. Thank you for your continued readership over these past two years! We have more great content coming this year!

When looking at teams and evaluating performance and success, we oftentimes overlook the unsung and unlikely heroes and heroines that may not be the biggest, fastest or strongest. There are employees that are expected to succeed and sometimes fall short because the expectations are set too high. There...

In February 2012, I wrote a post entitled So You Got a PIP…Your Life Isn’t Over. Based on the monthly hits this post gets (many times in the hundreds), it leads me to believe that many of you are facing the reality of being placed on a performance improvement plan (PIP) or perhaps coming close to...

“Ugh, This Place Sucks, I Hate Working Here!”. Believe it or not about half your employees say that to themselves or out loud every day! I’m not scared of you, I can tell you the truth with no fear. As a Consultant, I get to talk to and work with a lot of people and it’s awesome....

We are off this week, but we will be back next week with new content. Have a great week!  

You can’t get on the interwebs without reading at least 20 blogs about Leadership every day.  This isn’t bad, but we keep trying to find the silver bullet to make leadership fit into a neat package.  This isn’t possible because of two factors:  (1) All companies are different and,...

I have been watching what my fellow team members here at PICHR have been talking about this month, and there is a lot of dialogue about stuff that is going on in the trenches of HR.  Trench HR is not my term, I am borrowing it from my friend Charlie Judy (consider this as proper attribution), only...

There are a lot of overused, misused, and stale management words used in the workplace, especially buzz words like “granular”, “leading-edge”, “synergy”, etc. Like me, I’m sure you hear them every day, and you have your favorites. There are those that make you cringe every time someone...

So we’re talking misused and abused workplace words at PIC this month. The one that annoys me the most? Coach. As in, “I coached him on XYZ-thing and he got better” or “All she needs is some additional coaching.” It’s been used so much that now “coaching”...

I’m working on reviewing and revising the employee handbook at work… I’m not sure there is anything more soul sucking then wading through labor law disclosures. Luckily for me I’m on a great team that is working hard to blow up the current version and make the new manual/handbook/guide (we haven’t...

There is only one sport where every player contributes during every game. Not football with their 50+ man rosters; and not baseball with their 20+ man squads; and certainly not basketball with the last three players on the bench looking as fresh in their warm ups at the end of the game as they did during...

Integrity is something I hold people to the highest degree; without integrity, there is no trust and it can cause people to routinely question someone’s motives, performance, etc. I recently came across an infographic outlining information on resume lying. You know, inflations of the truth on...

While picking up some hotcakes at McDonald’s, I noticed a little promotional graphic on the side of the large plastic bag.  It said, “Grow Your Own, We Did.” The graphic had a bowl of something that looked hot and good, a plant and it’s roots, and a stat about the success of their restaurant...

If you evaluate the organizational structures utilized by most organizations today, you could easily translate these structures as a tower of people. Meaning you have layers of people building up to one person, usually the CEO of the organization. However, just as easy as we formulate these organizational...

Are you paying attention to your organization? The people? The processes? The sounds? Yes, the sounds of your organization can tell you a lot. Silence is deafening – ever been in a house with kids and its really quiet? Like too quiet, so you go lurking to investigate the silence? Sometimes they are...

Today’s post is from guest blogger Tyana Daley . Tyana is a writer for Bisk Education, founded by Nathan Bisk. Tyana covers a variety of career-related topics such as, human resources and leadership. She is currently a junior at the University of South Florida studying Technical Communications and...

I remember when I was going to college in the early 80′s hearing this radical new rock group called the Red Hot Chili Peppers on the college alt rock station.  I couldn’t believe my ears!!  They were fresh, unique and extremely radical.  It was so hard to categorize them and it still is...

At one point or another many of us have been asked to do something that we perceived to be impossible.  Pick your excuse, it’s never been done, this will cause problems, it will never work – you have probably heard them all. But it is the true leader who doesn’t waiver in the face...

In the world of baseball it is Spring Training season! The free agents have been signed, the rookies have been called up from the triple A teams, the fields are manicured, and the Mascots’ outfits have been dry cleaned. Now it’s time to dust off the cleats and get to separating the all stars...

Recently, I found myself talking to a manager about an unexpected opening in his department. He had no one ready to fill the position but couldn’t leave the role completely vacant while we searched. After some discussion, we decided on an interim appointment until the best candidate was identified....

I want to see more leaders that are open and transparent like Sheryl Sandberg, the Chief Operating Officer of Facebook. She recently published a book on women in the workplace titled Lean In.  As a C-Suite executive, an easy option would have been to stay quiet on the subject. After all she is damned...

It’s as if they arrived here on earth from a time far ahead in the future. They look like us, yet their impact is somehow very different than the majority of the employees who we work with each day. At times they are quite charming and appear to have a solid network of peers. But, something is...

Today’s post is from guest blogger Amanda Andrade. Amanda Andrade, SPHR, CCP, GRP  is the Chief People Officer for Veterans United Home Loans – Fortune magazine’s 21st best medium workplace and one the fastest growing companies in the United States according to INC magazine. Amanda has...

As I speak with colleagues and look at different organizations in regards to effectiveness and buy-in, I see a consistent theme:  managers talk too much. There’s always an opinion, and not enough implementation. Too much yapping and not enough listening. So I got to thinking about how managers...

Today’s post is from guest blogger Dunya Carter. Dunya Carter is a marketing professional specializing in HR from Brisbane, Australia. She works as a consultant for Corporate Challenge, a leading Australian corporate team building company. She also writes articles on HR-related topics for websites...

Accountability. If you reflect on the word, what does accountability mean to you? Webster defines accountability as:  the quality or state of being accountable; especially : an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one’s actions. When it comes to accountability,...

Search the word “leadership” online, there are over 300,000,000 results on Google and 125,000,000 on Bing.com. There is a lot of obvious advice out there about what are good and effective leadership traits but there is no general – all-encompassing leadership model or definition. Since...

Today’s post is from a guest blogger Nisha Raghavan. Nisha Raghavan is a Global HR professional with experience in handling Talent Management, Employee Engagement and Cultural diversity at work place. After having worked in Corporate India for a while she moved to United States and talks about...

Goals.  Not really a fan. Why, you may ask?  Too often in organizations, we stress goals at every opportunity and in every instance.  From an HR standpoint, we think by adding goals to performance reviews we have truly added a mechanism that will lead to unending development of the company’s...

For the month of February we have been talking goals, budgets and the like here at PIC. To further understand that topic, I would postulate most organizations are driven by the products they produce or services that they sell (Sales).  Whether it is General Motors, AT &T, United Way or a Hospital,...

The beginning of the year often serves as a time for reflecting on what we have accomplished during the previous year, and identifying our plans and focus for the coming year. Successful organizations make strategic planning a priority, set long-range goals, and identify objectives to assist with achieving...

Once upon a time, I worked with my staff to set goals. We met at the end of each year to set goals for the following year – and at the end of each quarter to discuss progress on their annual goals and other performance stuff. Some called this overkill. I called it accountability. The systems guy had...

The phrase “You can’t get blood out of a stone” refers to the inability to extract something from nothing. We do this all the time in HR.  Especially around goal setting time. Maybe it’s the thought of achieving 99% of a goal and getting the top payout for our bonus. Or maybe it’s because...

Today’s title represents the lamest excuse of all time used by HR “pros”  near and far. I’ve actually listened to HR Execs claim they have too much work to do and couldn’t possibly learn about social recruiting. Are you kidding me? They might as well have submitted their...

New years bring new dreams and goals for many – employees, managers, organizations, and people in general. In particular with organizations, you have on one hand, employees getting caught up in the “this is gonna be our year!” hype. On the other hand, you have fiery, inspirational leaders...

It is that time of year where organizations are setting goals for departments and employees to achieve for the quarter/year. And it is this very topic our Performance I Create contributors will be discussing this month. Specifically, what they seeing roll out in Q1 or for the year in regards to goals...

It is that time of the year in corporate America where organizations come together to establish goals for the year as to what should be achieved at the organizational, department, and employee level. Established goals sometimes are SMART and then sometimes they do not make any sense and just seem like...

Unlike basketball, in hockey, goal tending is a good thing – well, when it comes to achieving quarterly goals in corporate America you also need a good goalie! Let me explain. It’s the first quarter and there all sorts of exciting goals to be set for the year ahead. Meetings led by the CEO or...

January 2013, started off with a bang with our Bigger PIC-ture series in which each of the Performance I Create contributors detailed from their viewpoint what they felt the point, vision, mission, etc. is of Performance I Create, and based on that perspective what is it they are bringing for 2013 to...

HR folks have common bonds and threads, but they are far from being “the same.”  However, many HR folks want to practice their craft in a very narrow track with little chance for deviation.  Keeping things in line gives people a false sense of comfort, and also allows things to remain stagnant. We...

Typically when we think of creating performance we think in terms of excellence and achievement. But over the years I have learned that such is not always the case.  As is the name of our home here… Performance I Create,  that performance can sometimes be  less than a stellar thing.  Some managers,...

Management consultant and author, Jim Collins, wrote an entire book on how companies go from good to great. I believe In order to get to great, one should first master being good. This can be done by not just understanding the basics, but flawlessly executing them. The essentials apply to HR just like...

About a year ago, I decided to become a contributor at PIC to express a different part of my voice. My own blog is mostly fun and sometimes outlandish stories about lessons I’ve learned from experiences I’ve had over the last 10 years behind a HR desk. My audience was hooked and the formula...

I got into blogging and social media because I was looking for different voices in HR. And I definitely found it!  Some blogs are great because of the writer’s personality; others are great due to the volume and quality of information presented. Rarely there were a few that hit all the high notes...

How do you get better? What is the Tipping Point in your professional life that allows you to breakthrough to a new level of performance? Does it come from within; or, are you the type of person who feeds off the energy of a team that is engaged and passionate about what they do? Enter Performance I...

Performance is leading factor to any type of success, whether it is on a personal project, within an organization working on a team, or simply striving to compete for a gold medal in the Olympics. The effort we give is most of the time the result we will receive, which sometimes requires us to evolve...

Why do my employees always look so tired and worn out? Why do my employees often seem disinterested? Why do my employees just never seem to give their very best? Why can’t my employees just see and buy into the vision I have for the organization? These questions are often asked by managers without...

You might have seen the first two Bigger PIC-ture posts this week on Performance I Create and wondered what is going on. First, if you haven’t read the posts, go check them here: Bigger PIC-ture:  Defining Vision & Expectations Bigger PIC-ture:  Remove the Auto Tuned Performance   Now...

When I created this blog back in May 2011, my intent was to provide an outlet for readers to garner valuable information from a host of experienced, knowledgeable contributors on how to drive performance individually or collectively within an organization. Past year in a half in perspective/evaluation...

Just a couple years ago I was a brand-new blogger looking for exposure and opportunities. After a few months, I saw a tweet from Chris Ponder about a new multi-contributor site he was creating – titled Performance I Create {PIC} – and he was looking for new writers. Fast forward to 2013,...

In the event you are itching to read new content from Performance I Create crew, stay tuned! January 7th is when we will be back on the grid. In the meantime, check out some of our recent posts: PIC – The New Team Our Holiday Present to You – PIC’s 26 Best Posts of 2012 5 Secrets...

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from your friends at Performance I Create!

Performance I create, this site is passing through a bifurcation point (big word DRINK if you are playing along at home).  As the referenced definition says we may also be experiencing some chaos, and to steal further from the reference, qualitatively new types of behavior, along with a sudden change. When...

Well, 2012 is coming to a wrap. Wow – what a year! This year has definitely provided some awesome opportunities for Performance I Create. To name the big highlights for us in 2012: We started the new year with new contributors – Melissa Fairman, Jay Kuhns, and Buzz Rooney Content and readership...

Regardless what hat you wear in the HR department it’s not easy – few jobs these days are. Among your regular “assigned” job duties, you may be tasked with other stuff from people that have been laid off or left the company but the position was never re-filled.  Maybe every day you are starting...

I’ve been socially aware for about 2 years now and I was late to the party. However, as late as I was there are even more people who are just now coming to terms with social media’s power and influence. For instance, LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional social media network, is really...

My good friend Victorio Milian (@victorio_m) came up with a great idea for a lot of HR folks to talk about HR and their Home (city). You can read my post below, but also check out the other compilation of posts from some great HR folks at his site:  http://www.victoriomilian.com/2012/12/hr-and-home-carnival.html. Ranches....

Even the best marketing campaign can’t make up for a poor candidate experience. Think about it, you’ve interviewed with a company and had a horrendous experience. Now every time you come across marketing for that company, you shake your head and think “yeah, right!” And like most...

Growing up in a large family, I’ve seen and experienced a variety of methods to teach, correct and reinforce behaviors. When my cousins and I would successfully recite our Easter speeches, we’d get candy. If we didn’t clean up our messes, we’d get chased with a “switch”....

In case you hadn’t heard, I started a new job in October 2012. After 6 years, I left my comfort zone to take on new challenges with a new company. About 45 days into it, I am feeling great! My staff and co-workers are responding well to the initiatives and ideas I am bringing to the table. Where...

Last week we let you in on some great news – we added two new contributors to the Performance I Create team: Justin Harris (@UnlikelyHRGuy) and Steve Browne (@sbrownehr). And this past Monday we announced another new contributor – Dave Ryan (@DaveTheHRCzar). Well, in the great fashion of...

Last week we let you in on some great news – we added two new contributors to the Performance I Create team:  Justin Harris (@UnlikelyHRGuy) and Steve Browne (@sbrownehr). Well, today I am stoked to let you in on some more exciting news…..we are bringing aboard another great resource to...

Wow, where has the year gone? It seems just like yesterday we were starting 2012, and now we are already to the point of winding down the year. 2012 has been a fun year for me in that I started off the year at a new organization (in place 3 months prior to the new year) and now I am winding down the...

Miserable. Whining. Complaining. Never satisfied. Always feel they deserve more. Impossible to work with more often than not. No matter what we do for them, they seem to only have one response…. “Thanks for nothing.” Shared Responsibility I believe very strongly that the culture of...

Wishing you, your family, and friends a Happy Thanksgiving from your friends here at Performance I Create! Take this time to relish with loved ones and recollect what you are thankful for. Happy Thanksgiving!

As you may know from our post on Monday, we are adding new contributors to the Performance I Create team as we wrap the year. We already announced the addition of Justin Harris (@UnlikelyHRGuy) this past Monday (announcement). Today, I am excited to announce another great resource we are adding to the...

Thanksgiving is my favorite because it kicks off a season of giving and reflection. For the next 30 – 40 days, we spend our time thinking on how we can give to others in meaningful ways and how we can make our lives better. It’s the most wonderful time of the year!! 2012 has been an interesting...

There are plenty of things I am thankful for: job, home, family, and all the usual. We spend a lot of timing being thankful for all the above but I don’t think we spend enough time being thankful for the miracles of modern life. There are a ton of things we take for granted and I’m thankful that...

Just as 2012, started out awesome with the addition of Buzz Rooney, Jay Kuhns, and Melissa Fairman as contributors, we are excited to announce we are wrapping the year with new contributors coming on board! Yep, you read correctly…new contributors that are going to share even more great content...

This week in the United States brings forward a holiday for family, friends, and strangers to reflect on what they are thankful for – otherwise known as Thanksgiving. Although the contributors at Performance I Create will not be gathering around a dinner table with turkey, ham, stuffing, yams,...

Regardless of where you look today, you are going to see someone with a smartphone of some sort chalked with more apps than one would know what to do with. Gone are the days where people are simply using the old flip phones that require you to punch different numbers to eventually spell out a word for...

Productivity. What does this word mean to you? Given the shear nature of the many things workers face in today’s workplace – phone calls, IMs, text messages, emails, internet, and so forth – what does productivity look like today? If you had to measure your overall productivity of work...

Today I thought I would share this interesting infographic on vacation time and use across different countries. Reflecting on your vacation time, are you utilizing your time to balance out your life and give your mind/body a break? If not, why not? Time off does the mind and body good! Image Credit:...

Let’s talk development and retention. The best way to figure out career strategies is to have a conversation with your potential high performers. Talk to them about their goals and career path. Develop plans to help them attain those goals. If that sounds familiar, it is, it’s called a performance...

High performance work organizations want high performing employees, or at least they used to. Many companies do not know how to identify and retain those high performers that they covet. Many companies don’t have adequate applicant or talent tracking software. As an independent consultant I talk to...

So there has been a lot of hype lately about how the late, great Steve Jobs managed people. Turns out he wasn’t always the nicest manager…but he sure did get results. Well it now turns out there are a whole lot of people who think that is “the way” to manage people. I really hope that fad falls...

Everyone wants freedom to breath, be creative, trusted to perform their essential job duties and meet deliverables on time without harassment. Nobody wants to be micromanaged or tied to their desk all day. That’s understandable, that’s desirable and hell that’s what I want too. But total freedom...

We thought we would share some exciting news from our friends over at SmartRecruiters. SmartRecruiters just released today results of a survey they conducted that demonstrates the hiring process is broken, but explains how they are working towards addressing that broken process with the new release of...

I have seen a lot of posts come out recently regarding engagement and creativity with employees in the workplace and so I thought I might revisit one of my September 2010 posts from XtremeHR – I think the content that I discussed and shared is still relevant today! With today’s ever changing...

In today’s ever evolving world of communication, more companies are relying on graphics to convey an initial impression or message to the consumer/customer through logos, commercials, company names, etc. But have you ever given any thought as to what it was in that organization’s commercial...

Perusing my old blog, XtremeHR, I came across this post I wrote in November 2010, and decided I would like to share it again since it is approaching annual compliance training in many organizations– let’s bring back the accountability folks! Each year many organizations role out annual compliance...

We are already in the stage of winding down August and before you know it, Labor Day will be here, which is the holiday we typically consider as the close of Summer. Before we get to that stage in the year where we have wrapped Summer, I wanted to spend some time recapping the content we have published...

I received a call from a friend the other day who asked me a question about the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). First I was surprised that he even knew what the FLSA was, most people don’t realize that the law that governs over time, independent contractors, etc is called FLSA. So my friend had a...

Let’s talk about performance, competition and deserves. We just wrapped up the Olympic Games in London. Of course you have heard of the Olympics, they occur every 4 years and athletes from all over the world gather to compete and represent their countries in a variety of sporting events. The work and...

Perusing my old blog, XtremeHR, I came across this post I wrote in November 2010, and decided I would like to share it again – let’s bring back the accountability folks! This past week, San Francisco banned McDonald’s from luring children with toys in the Happy Meal (effective December...

Do you dread going to work everyday due to a “bad” boss? Do spend countless hours worrying about what your boss does or says? Does your boss impact your overall quality of life outside of work? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you aren’t the only one. As you will see from...

Professionalism in the workplace today is key and unfortunately at times is lacking with many of our current employees. Thus, the reason why managers and HR professionals are scrutinizing interviewees even more when it comes to overall professionalism. A 2012 study from York College of Pennsylvania –...

Once upon a time, I received a complaint from an employee. He was upset because he was being assigned to the same position on the production line every day. He was receiving no cross-training on the other positions and, after almost 6 months, he was fed up. He believed his supervisor was deliberately...

New Manager? Seasoned Manager? Middle of the road? Still trying to figure out what your employees think of you? Here are ten quick tips on how to be the best manager your employees have ever had: Ask their opinion – only do this if you are really interested in it. Also prepare yourself for how...

Since we have arrived at that half-way mark of the year, it is time for the “check-the-box” conversations around mid-year performance. Don’t you just love having to set aside time to simply talk about performance up to this point? Why aren’t those conversations around performance...

I consider myself a fairly driven person. That mindset has manifested itself in cross-country moves for my career, long commutes for new jobs, and weird hours at work. Personally the signs are there as well…triathlons, a marathon, trying to never miss any of the kids swim meets, hockey or football...

Employee engagement is a buzz word that you will hear in many organizations today. And yes, it is a buzz word, but it is a buzz word that you should be paying attention to. Why? Because disengaged employees can make a difference in your the culture you are attempting to build, drive down customer service,...

Are you the oldest person in your core group of friends? Are you the wisest? Are you the person that they come to for advice? If you’ve answered yes to any of those questions then you are not going to like the next sentence. You need to drop them all and get a new group of friends. Yep, that’s right,...

The online MBA program team at the University of North Carolina launched an infographic in partnership with the Young Entrepreneur Council as a part of their #FixYoungAmerica campaign, discussing the impact millennials have in today’s workforce and how organizations can maximize their potential. You...

Happy Fourth of July from your friends here at Performance I Create! Enjoy your time with love ones and friends, but remember to be safe. Now onto the good food and fireworks

Job descriptions are one of the most important documents we can create. It outlines the requirements and duties of a position — which dictate how we advertise for the job, screen and select candidates, compensate, train and develop, and evaluate performance. Much focus is given to making sure...

This week is #SHRM12 in Atlanta, Georgia, and with the number of bloggers who will be sharing their experiences this week via Twitter and/or their blog, Performance I Create is going to stall this week on new content to allow you plenty of time to read the #SHRM content. We will pick back up with new...

If you are any human resources person, we all know that it costs the organization a significant amount of money to turnover an employee. Thus the reason why many organizations spend a lot of mulah and time on hiring, onboarding, training, and development. But what about those people that just don’t...

I’ve been thinking a lot about thinking. About once or twice a year I take some time (it’s usually around the New Year or my Birthday) to think about where I am in my life and where I want to go. Am I headed in the right direction? Are the choices I’m making going to get me where I want to go?...

This post was inspired by my current journey I am taking with moving down the path of trying to obtain my PhD so that I can eventually teach college. Primarily from the perspective that if the opportunity doesn’t present itself for me to get my PhD, what next. This is a professional hiccup that...

I thought I would share this infographic that I found on Mashable around social media and its impact on our real world relationships with people. How is social media impacting your real world relationships? Happy Friday everyone and have a great weekend! Photo Credit: Mashable Onbile

When you evaluate skills of upper management/leadership or when you think about the skills upper management/leadership should have, what comes to mind? ….leadership, communication, time management, decision making, self-awareness???? Well, Mindflash (one of my favorite sites these days to check...

Sometimes in life, we get way ahead of ourselves. We want the kids, spouse, SUV, house in the burbs and the white picket fence before we are really ready for it all. We apply that philosophy to our careers; we want to do it all until an employer comes along and demands it all from us and then we want...

Is someone getting the best of you? Maybe that means they’re getting your best possible performance? Or, maybe they’re taking advantage? How about your team members…are you creating an environment where they know you are getting the best out of them? Do they know you will support them...

Once upon a time, I had an assistant. I put her in charge of finalizing a small project while I was on vacation. We’d made an update to the procedure manual for cleaning one of the machines. The training was complete and the addendum with the new procedure had been added to the manual. My assistant...

We spend a lot of time strategizing about retaining our best people. Retention schemes run the gamut from stay interviews to stay bonuses, stretch assignments, etc.; these are great options for trying to keeping our best people. Unfortunately, we usually don’t realize we need someone until we hear...

We have wrapped another week and it is finally Friday! We love Fridays here at Performance I Create because we get to share with you content we have found throughout the week. However this Friday, we are going to recap our April and May posts here at Performance I Create. So let’s get started: April...

What comes to mind when you hear mandatory training? More than likely the response you elicited is:  ”ugh”. This response is typical when it comes to mandatory training because many times we use the fact that it is mandatory to make the training long, boring, information intense, and something...

… And someone is always getting thrown under it. At least, that is the case everywhere I’ve worked. Hearing one person accuse another person of “throwing them under the bus” happens almost daily. And I’m over it! Listen up: Not everyone is going to like you or the work...

Have you ever heard the phrase:  There is no “I” in “TEAM”? Sure you have. This phrase is a statement used both in our years growing up as a child and in our adult lives within the places we work. But how true does this statement really hold true? Think about it. We hear it time and time again,...

I had the honor to attend the Louisiana SHRM conference (#LASHRM12) in New Orleans, LA, this past Thursday and Friday (April 26-27). In my post –  My First Day at #LASHRM12 = Freakin’ Rocked! - I explained that the first day brought forth many thoughts for me to include:  excitement, innovation,...

Attention all WordPerfect 5.1 experts…please apply now! Now Hiring - key punch operators! Great opportunity – print advertising specialist needed today! What’s Going On? I’ve been responsible for recruiting talent into organizations for years and years. Relevant experience...

Today began the first day of the Louisiana SHRM (#LASHRM12) conference here in New Orleans and as I reflect back on the first day, a lot of thoughts come to mind:  exciting, innovative, engaging, refreshing, enlightening, fun, and informative. So many thoughts come to mind because I can honestly say...

I was speaking with a friend the other day and the discussion came up regarding the use of vendors in the workplace – whether it was a good or bad to utilize in the workplace. I don’t know about you, but in today’s workplace it is almost impossible not to utilize a vendor for something...

If you didn’t know, #LASHRM12 is coming up this Thursday and Friday, April 26th & 27th, in New Orleans! And it is going to be an awesome time with great presenters, awesome HR pros, and a rockin’ social media team to keep you in the loop just in case you are not able to make the conference....

Never been a fan of “The Biggest Loser” on NBC, but last year I was watching it and they have added a new trainer – this guy name Dolvett. He’s a beast just like Bob, the old trainer. They work those folks like a rented donkey. At any rate, Dolvett is laying it on thick; barking instructions...

I initially started this series and unfortunately it stalled – I’m sorry. Life happened and it just didn’t work out to get completed. However, I am starting it back up and picking up where I left off. If you missed the replays of the initial posts in this series, check them out here:...

Another week has flown by and another Friday has arrived. I don’t know about you, but I needed this Friday to come….this week has been super busy. But, now on to the good stuff. Last week we published a list of the #HR conferences that are coming up across the country – if you missed...

Most people have trained or assisted the training department at some point in their career. It’s kind of expected as part of the process. Everyone has been asked to show a “noobie” the ropes, it’s part of the onboarding phase. So really who cares? Being labeled a trainer or having trained a bunch...

We are going to be rounding out our Human Performance Improvement (HPI) series, so we thought we would replay our existing posts so you can get caught up before we publish new content. Enjoy! ****** Last week, you learned about the Organizational/Business analysis in the Human Performance Improvement...

We are going to be rounding out our Human Performance Improvement (HPI) series, so we thought we would replay our existing posts so you can get caught up before we publish new content. Enjoy! ****** Last week I discussed the difference between performance management and human performance improvement....

We are going to be rounding out our Human Performance Improvement (HPI) series, so we thought we would replay our existing posts so you can get caught up before we publish new content. Enjoy! ******** Today’s workplace involves more scrutiny in terms of performance, but when it comes to improving that...

We have wrapped another week and it is finally Friday! This Friday, we thought we would share with you the HR conferences that are coming up this year. Here we go: April 23-25 2012 Virginia SHRM State Conference “HR2aT” Visit the website for conference details:  http://shrmva.org April 25...

I’ve worked with leaders for years. Quite honestly its a privilege to have a job that provides support to people in some of the most tense situations in the workplace. Through the countless hours of meetings however, I’ve noticed that because so many leaders are perfectionists they believe...

This weekend I spent some time catching up on Daniel Crosby’s organizational blog – IncBlog. I enjoy reading Daniel’s posts because he presents some smart, out-of-the-box thinking, makes you go hmm, content. One post that intrigued me was The Four Types of Teams – What’s...

We have wrapped another week and it is finally Friday! We love Fridays here at Performance I Create because we get to share with you content we have found throughout the week. However this Friday, we are going to recap the March posts here at Performance I Create. So let’s get started: March 5:  Is...

People who know me in the workplace quickly find out that I enjoy numbers and data. I enjoy numbers because they provide you a picture of what is going on. However, I also understand that the initial picture you obtain with numbers is just that – it is the initial picture. Making decisions simply...

We hear a lot about the sad state of the performance appraisal process:  It’s broken, fundamentally flawed and completely irrelevant.  Some of that is probably true.  I’ve heard many suggestions ranging from the extreme of having DAILY performance meetings, to the opposite extreme where companies...

We have wrapped another week and it is finally Friday! We love Fridays here at Performance I Create because we get to share with you content we have found throughout the week. So let’s get started: Employee Financial Wellness Ben Eubanks provides us some discussion around employee financial wellness...

I was in a meeting discussing the pros/cons of partnering with a new vendor. The price point seemed reasonable and the functionality seemed awesome but there was concern about our ability to train the staff and monitor it’s usage in light of some other projects we have going on. There was no point...

2011 and 2012 have had some breakthrough of job openings within organizations. Subsequently, many people have moved on to bigger and better opportunities or in other words, exited stage left. Ultimately, people are leaving organizations for several reasons: Not happy with their job or organization Lack...

We have wrapped another week and it is finally Friday! We love Fridays here at Performance I Create because we get to share with you content we have found throughout the week. So let’s get started: Companies Increase Wellness Incentive Dollars SHRM article that details the results of a recent survey...

I’ve read articles, heard speakers, listened to webinars, and spent many hours dealing with the issue of “fit” in the workplace. It seems to me that fit is easier to recognize when it’s perfect or when it’s really not there at all. When it’s perfect everything seems...

Over the years, I have had heard and seen pros and cons to different trainers, facilitators, and presenters. Some of those items include: Pros Engaging Interactive Humorous Storyteller Fun Cons Boring Reads to me Non-engaging Doesn’t know the material they are presenting Attempts to be humorous,...

It’s Friday folks. What did your week look like? Was it productive? What impact did you make? I had the opportunity to attend a company HR meeting in Minneapolis – lots of great HR talk, building strategy and synergy, project outlines, and fun. Enough about that…now to share some content...

I’ve had the pleasure of career coaching several individuals regarding interview tips, resumes and other ways to separate themselves from the pack in this crazy job market. One thing I hadn’t counted on was onboarding and training problems that exist out here in the workplace. I have 2 clients, 2...

So if you haven’t heard, Apple is going to be releasing the iPad 3 soon. Originally when I heard this news I thought to myself, “didn’t they just release the iPad 2?” And the answer to that is yes – the iPad 2 was released in March 2011. Now a year later, Apple is ready...

We are starting something new here at Performance I Create on Friday – it is called Friday Feature. Ultimately Friday will be a day to provide you various links to news articles, blog posts, research, etc. to continue your learning and growth. However, we do not want to just make it about what...

In today’s ever diverse workforce, you have more than likely come across someone that just isn’t cutting the mustard. Ultimately, there are two options we can face with this employee:  ignore or coach. The easy option is to simply ignore the deficiency in performance because as everyone...

So we are going on two months here at Performance I Create in which we have had our new/existing contributors on board and pumping out some great content. Honestly, I cannot believe we have already reached the two month point, but it has been such a great ride the time has flown by. The best part is...

This is the continuation to a previous post I wrote for PIC: Are you the Wizard of Oz? The man behind the curtain? Would you know? What is so wrong with sitting in a castle issuing orders to your loyal legions of munchkins? Nothing if you are the Wizard of Oz.  But if you are a leader in 2012, it’s...

One of the best things about the organizations I’ve worked for is the constant feedback. Monthly, quarterly, annual … Feedback. Every project, every committee, every major meeting … Feedback. Report, metrics, trends … Feedback. There was and is never an excuse not to know your performance regarding...

You just got put on a performance improvement plan (PIP) – oh no. I am sure there are a number of thoughts crossing your mind:  crap, what am I going to do, my manager is just singling me out, how did this happen, the expectations are just too much, and on, and on. It’s understandable the...

Last week Chris Fields, blogger at Cost of Work and contributor to the PerformanceICreate site, wrote a post entitled Why Does Work Suck. If you missed his post, Chris explained to us that employees have a lot of reasons resulting in their disengagement at work currently – thus, making work suck....

Face it folks, work sucks! According to latest statistical data regarding employee sentiments, over 70% are disengaged. This means basically they hate it. The employees don’t feel connected to the organization, valued or respected. They simply come in do the minimum amount required, collect their paychecks...

I have the privilege of coaching a group of fourteen year old boys who play highly competitive ice hockey. Since we are based in Florida, we travel extensively to play good teams from more traditional hockey states in the North. Our boys are incredibly dedicated, committed, and fiercely competitive. And...

It is no secret that the state of the economy has required organizations to rethink how they operate. In fact, companies that once raked in money hand-over-fist in the late 90s and mid-2000s, are now realizing the customer experience is “actually” important and expectations of employees have...

You wouldn’t think there would be a leadership lesson in The Wizard of Oz but watching it the other day I was reminded of a senior leader, at a previous company, that was rarely seen or heard from but his presence was felt everywhere.  His direct reports routinely used his name at will to bully people...

January means Annual Performance Review time at the job. And Annual Performance Review means I get a raise!! Woo hooo!! This got me thinking about compensation, rewards and recognition as it relates to employee performance. I was mindlessly mulling this over during a lunch by myself when my server came...

You absolutely have heard this line before “…just be happy to have a job.” I’ve never heard it in a positive context. It’s usually when someone is trying to look at the bright side of a dim situation. You don’t hear Oprah saying “I’m just happy to have job.” As a human resource professional...

I’ve been in Human Resources a long time. I’ve been in healthcare a long time too. Through it all the Performance Review has been a mainstay not only in the corporate culture of the various health systems I’ve worked; but also in the regulatory psyche of those that oversee hospital...

If you read about our plan for 2012, you know that we are adding some new contributors to the team. We already announced two of our newest contributors, Melissa Fairman (announcement) and Jay Kuhns (announcement). But today, I am excited to announce another great resource we are adding to the Performance...

If you read about our plan for 2012, you know that we are adding some new contributors to the team. We already announced one of our newest contributors, Melissa Fairman – check out that announcement here. But today, I am excited to announce another great resource we are adding to the Performance...

The other day I was reading USA Today and there was an article discussing toll roads across the United States and which states had the most toll roads. Now, if you live in a city with toll roads, you come to have a love-hate relationship with these things. I know you may be asking how you can have a...

2012 is shaping up to be a great year for us here at Performance I Create. How so? We are adding new contributors to the site – three new contributors, in fact! Which brings me to the introduction of Melissa Fairman, who is joining the contribution team this month. Many of you know Melissa from...

It is 2012, and the start of a new year. Starting a new year can equate the same routine or something new. Here at Performance I Create we are pushing for the latter – something NEW! 2011 was a good starting year for us with a great group of contributors and content, but we are planning and working...

If you ever read my articles on “Performance I Create” you’ll notice that when it comes down to process improvement, I always start with analysis. That’s my style. You have to have a starting point. You must know where you are before you can get to where you want to go. Now the one thing I have...

This post comes from inspiration when I was living and working in Memphis, Tennessee, a couple of months back. The surrounding area where I used to work was a popular area for those trying to be the next Lance Armstrong – you know what I mean:  ten-speed bikes and full-body jump suit. Truthfully,...

What does it mean to have influence and klout? Believe me; it has little to do with the Social Media site KLOUT that measures online influence by your activity on social media with your friends, followers or connections.  While there are millions of people that use those types of sites, there are millions...

Let’s continue our conversation about the performance I create…. This post will discuss ‘What’ will influence your performance? What do you do? What do you WANT to do that you are not doing now? What do you need to KNOW to do what you are not doing now? What people invest, illuminate and inspire...

Last week, you learned about the Organizational/Business analysis in the Human Performance Improvement (HPI) model. To recap, the organizational or business analysis is the process of identifying and clarifying company vision, mission, goals, targets, and needs. This step in the process ultimately works...

When Chris invited me to contribute to this blog, I was intrigued by the name of the site.  After 20 years of delivering, designing and developing learning solutions the one common theme which influences and improves performance is individual commitment.  Performance is about “I.”  Individuals...

Just as the world has changed, so has training. Technology has made life convenient, efficient and easy. It has also made us a little dumber and lazier. Harsh, but true! Because information is so easily accessible, no one likes to consume and retain it. Who goes to the library and uses research or reference...

Last week I discussed the difference between performance management and human performance improvement. In case you missed the post, here is the high-level difference between the two: Performance Management Performance Management is usually referenced as the process of managing performance of an organization,...

Today’s workplace involves more scrutiny in terms of performance, but when it comes to improving that performance what comes to mind? Performance management or (Human) Performance Improvement? When managing performance, performance management and performance improvement can be two different things?...

I originally brought this topic up last year when my friend Michael Carty at Xpert HR asked me to participate in the “If I Could Change One Thing About HR….” blog series. With this being mid-year and some organizations re-evaluating talent with mid-years reviews, I wanted to re-share this information. Ultimately,...

August will be the breaking point for consistent, regular content on the Performance I Create site by our contributors. New posts will be up as soon as next week! Look for new posts on various topics to include: Human Performance Improvement Training & Telling Performance Reviews Leadership And...

What makes a good leader? Here’s what I know.  I’ve always known when I was working for a good leader and when I was working for a…uh well tool.  Leadership styles vary and one doesn’t trump the other; it’s subjective to the culture, mission, vision and goal of the company. Style is important...

Yesterday, I facilitated an ASTD Virtual Conference Session with 586 LIVE participants.  Due to the number of participants, most of the interactive tools and tricks that I typically utilize in a virtual session were not available.  As I debriefed this session with a few of my amazing colleagues, I...

Sustainability and workforce analytics – big terms that are getting a lot of play nowadays. They can mean different things in different settings, but here we will use them in relation to training. Sustainability is hard to do, well maybe not too hard if you have the vision, resources and forward...

When it comes to grading talent in your organization, asking the wrong questions can lead to some serious miscalculations. Today’s guest post comes from Dan Portillo, Vice President of Success and Engagement with Rypple. You can check out Dan on LinkedIn or his blog site at Rypple. I advise companies...

E-learning – you’ve done it.  Your organization has bought the fancy LMS and you’ve stocked your stable with instructional designers and fancy Flash developers ready to make immersive learning worlds for your employees.  The expensive to run instructor-led curriculum has been converted to...

You’re ahead of the curve. Your top performers are well compensated, and getting recognized regularly. How can you ensure that you maintain this sense of accomplishment without your key talent looking for their next move? When asking, what more can managers do to ensure employees are happy at work, Paul...

Gardeners help plants Grow.  I help people Grow.  Here are some growing ideas: Growing requires daily attention.   Every day check your garden.  Some plants need water or fertilizing nourishment, and some only need a little admiration. Growing produces fruit in the right conditions.  I found that...

You have heard it before, we must increase productivity, reduce overhead, and do it fast. Often times performance improvement and training go hand-in-hand. Whenever someone is under performing, the suits (upper management) ask, were they properly trained? But before you go upgrading all your training...

For those that are contemplating attending the 2011 ASTD International Conference and Exposition, review Kimberly Seeger’s – conference mentor – outline below. ** The ASTD International Conference and Exposition on May 22 – 25 will host more than 10,000 Workplace Learning Professionals...

Are you ready to learn about training/learning and development, performance improvement, instructional design, and so much more? Well, the call was put out for contributors to write for the Performance I Create (PIC) blog site to share their wealth of knowledge and experience around training/learning...

Are you a forward thinker that knows how to impact performance and productivity? Are you interested in sharing your wealth of knowledge and experience in the learning/training/performance improvement spectrum by contributing weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly posts? Then the Performance I Create venue may...