A whelmer is someone who we manage at work who neither overwhelms us with their professional expertise. enthusiasm and commitment, nor underwhelms us with their lack of talent and commitment.

They inhabit the middle ground of mediocrity.

Whelmers are a problem because they act as cultural magnets, performance benchmarks in the organisation.  They are the experts in knowing just what has to be done to be seen by the organisation as ‘acceptable’.

So what should we do when we recognise that we have a whelmer on the team.  The first thing to do is to look in the mirror.  The person you see is the one who has allowed a human being with energy, enthusiasm, talent and passion (you did check for those things when you recruited them didn’t you) into a whelmer.  In order to change their response to your management style, you need to change the way you manage.  Keep on doing what you have always done….

The first thing to do is to invest time in building a relationship with the whelmer.  Let them know that you know they are capable of giving more and ask what you need to do (or stop doing) if they are to give of their best.  Don’t just do this once.  Keep doing it.  Regularly. Not just at annual reviews but at least monthly, preferably weekly.  Let them know that you value them and that you want to see them doing well.  Make it clear that you EXPECT MORE.

Secondly focus on the behaviours that they exhibit that make you think ‘whelmer’.

• Is it that they never accept delegation?
• Never volunteer to work on projects?
• Hardly contribute to meetings?
• Rarely smile or express a positive reaction?

Get specific about the behaviours and then use feedback to make sure that the whelmer knows exactly what they are doing that causes you, and no doubt others, to be ‘whelmed’ by their contribution to the workplace.  Give the feedback freely and consistently and make it clear that yo expect them change.  Feedback must be given properly for it to e effective though - so come along to one of our training events to learn how to do it well!

Thirdly spend some time understanding what they are looking for from the organisation.  Most whelmers join with high hopes and every intention to be an overwhelmer.  But as ambition is thwarted they slip into the ranks of the whelmers.

Maslow is relevant here.

Most whelmers wanted to achieve something of importance.  They not only wanted a salary and a sense of belonging but they also wanted to make the world a better place when they chose to work for you.  But you have failed them.  They have recognised that they are unable to achieve this higher purpose in the organisation (no doubt due to resource restrictions or politics) and so have given up on this higher purpose and settled for the monthly salary and a quiet and unspectacular working life.  Often the whelmers will do their self actualising outside of work where they will show incredible passion, skills and enthusiasm for anything from stamp collecting to binge drinking.

So re-visit their hopes and aspirations for working for you.  Talk to them.  Re-kindle their belief that they can achieve something worthwhile at work and then re-double your efforts through feedback, coaching and delegation to give them the opportunities that they need to be a real force for progress in the organisation.

By helping a whelmer step up to being an overwhelmer not only will you and they have a much better time at work but also productivity is likely to increase by 25-40%.

Clearly Ken had been working on a Boris Victory Contingency Plan…

These days I am 6ft 4″ and carry a few extra pounds.

However there was a time when I was 5ft 4″, skinny as a rake and sought after by rowing crews as a cox.  Yes the small person who sits in the back of the boat - barking a very limited range of orders and making small adjustments to direction with a tiny rudder.

Truth of the matter is that as a cox I could achieve very little.  I could urge the rowers to give more effort, or even get them to ease off a little if they are in danger of peaking too early.   I could plot the best course possible.  But that was just about it.

I couldn’t really see what was going on in the boat.  I could tell just how hard the crew was currently working (the stroke rate) and could ask for extra effort in short bursts to try to get the boat ahead of the competition.  I could make some educated guesses at what individuals were doing by watching how their oars moved through the water.

I couldn’t coach the crew.  The coach would usually be be seen on the bank, riding a bicycle and shouting instructions to the rowers.

In terms of really helping the crew to improve performance - well that was out of my hands.  I could just get the best out of them on the day.  I would do this by putting their effort into context.  Keeping them informed about whether we were catching the opposition or not.  About how far we had to go before a bend came into our favour or we reached the finish line.

All I could do was create a context in which the crew were likely to give me more effort.

And I meet a lot of managers who work just like a cox.  They tell good stories and demand more effort in return for prizes.  But they never get their bike onto the river bank to really understand what is going on in the boat.

They miss a lot of chances, that a cox never has, to develop their crew.

‘Because so many organisations will be competing for the same resources, the (HR) profession will have to manage a marketplace which has changed from one where employers choose to one where potential employees choose.’

Florent Franceur - WFPMA President

I know it is not much of a highlight - but at least it has the virtue of being true.  If you want to recruit and retina good people you had better have  compelling offer - and you had better help them to achieve in their own terms - or they will go elsewhere. Only the whelmers will remain!

We are a reservoir of literally human resources, but we don’t always dig deep enough because it’s inconvenient. Sometimes tidiness and efficiency get in the way of creativity’

Charles Handy

Chip Conley has written a great book called PEAK - How great companies get their mojo from Maslow. In it he gives grave warning of the dangers of whelmers.

According to Chip there are three types of recruit in your organisation.

There are the over-whelmers - those people that ‘over-whelm’ you with their energy, skill, passion and enthusiasm. These people are what you need. They provide the foundations on which excellent can be built. However you will need to work hard, very hard, to recruit and retain them. These people have choices about where they work - so why should they choose to stick with you?

Then there are the under-whelmers - those that leave you distinctly unimpressed. According to Chip these don’t constitute a real problem either - because they are easily recognised and managed. As a consequence they either perform or get fired. I only wish it were this simple - but I do get the point. Under performance is easily recognised and can then be managed if you have the courage and commitment to do so.

The real dangers are those people that neither over nor under whelm. These are the whelmers. Their work is OK without being great. Customers are satisfied without being thrilled. Colleagues have kind of got used to the mediocrity. And the over-whelmers will not want to be any where near them as they sap energy and enthusiasm. They are passion vampires.

And this is the pernicious culture killer - mediocrity. If the whelmers are allowed to carve out a quiet life of mediocrity they will drag the culture of your organisation down to their level.

In the words of the legendary Van Morrison:

“You gotta fight every day to keep mediocrity at bay”.

Tom Peters was back in London recently.  Here are some highlights…

“Remember. You are the only human being in the world who can help this particular customer at this particular moment in time.”

“The thing that keeps a business ahead of the competition is excellence in execution.”

“Brand inside is more important than brand outside for sustained success.”

“Make sure that you spend your time on the things you say are your priorities.”

“It’s remarkable how quickly an excellent culture can be torn apart by poor management.”

“Irrelevance comes from always doing the things you know how to do in the way you’ve always done them.”

“If you love your company and love what you do, you will serve your customers better—period!”

I was sent this by a PMN member who knows that I am a bit of a mangement geek. It is a bunch of essays on management - all just 6 words long! I think they speak volumes about different approaches to management:

1. Seek understanding, give support, find results
2. Look, listen, learn. Lift, laugh, lead.
3. Learned to GTD, teaching others how.
4. They tried harder but kept failing.
5. Learned management wisdom, tried something else.
6. Eventually she understood what really mattered.
7. Empower the team, hold them accountable.
8. Facilitate the network, let the net work.
9. Always learning and teaching, join me
10. I requested, they failed, I fired.
11. Challenge your people; pay them well.
12. I trust you, make it happen
13. Living to shape minds and destinies!
14. He tried, sometimes failed,always learnt.
15. Worked hard, failed alot, succeeded some.
16. Chaos ensuing, unaccountability ruling, we’re compelling.
17. I am interested in your work.
18. Worked hard, failed alot, succeeded some.
19. I trust you, make it happen
20. First, take care of your people.
21. Living to shape minds and destinies!
22. They tried harder but kept failing.
23. ‘He tried, sometimes failed, always learnt.’
24. Empower the team, hold them accountable.
25. Eventually she understood what really mattered.
26. Most importantly, learn to ask questions.
27. Herding Cats, Taming Lions. Why Not?
28. Your worth is in their eyes.
29. Demand high standards; measure with grace
30. I ask questions, you find solutions.
31. To learn more sooner, fail faster.
32. Outward transformation begins with internal change.
33. Let’s squash the competition like bugs!
34. My success begins with your success.
35. Share vision. Don’t be an obstacle.
36. You will rise above and conquer!
37. Do Plan. Study. Act. Celebrate. Repeat.
38. Lead by staying out of the way.
39. One of many; catalysts don’t boast
40. Life is a journey…so enjoy.
41. Dare to dream…and dream BIG!
42. Watch, Do, Teach; Learn, Live, Give.
43. Orders are easy, Examples are harder
44. Measure twice, cut once.
45. Honeydew this, Honeydew that, I’ll watch.
46. Open hands hold more than fists
47. Who, What, Why, where, When, How.
48. My work is their work, succeeding.
49. Succeed by failing different every time
50. You’ll be MY boss, one day
51. Find the “why”, then act. Repeat.
52. Once knew all. Now know better.

Let me know which ones you like/dislike and why?

I think my favourite is ‘Your worth is in their eyes’ -so true!

And if you know who was the originator/collector of these micro-essays please do let me know so that I can pay them full acknowledgement!

This one made me smile!

More than four in ten UK employees are considering quitting their job in the next year, YouGov research for Investors in People suggests. In a report published in April 2008:

A lack of motivation at work is cited as a major problem, with unreasonable workloads, feeling underpaid and a lack of career path being blamed.

About half of staff said they had not been supported beyond their initial induction at work.

Meanwhile more than a quarter felt unsupported by their managers.

Nearly one in three (30%) UK employees is de-motivated in their current role, according to research published today by Investors in People UK. Significantly, 43% are considering taking action and leaving their job in the next 12 months, with those that have been in their job for one to two years most likely to want to do so (48%).

The research carried out by YouGov on behalf of Investors in People UK, found that the top three de-motivating factors for employees were:

• unreasonable workload (18%),
• feeling underpaid (18%) and
• lack of clear career path (17%).

Overall, nearly half of employees (44%) claim their organisation has failed to continue supporting their career development beyond their initial induction period.

Over a quarter (28%) of employees also said they felt ‘unsupported’ by their managers.

De-motivation is highest within larger companies with 39% of people in organisations of 5,000 or more say that they are either not very or not at all motivated compared to 30% in organisations of between 50 and 250 people.

Motivation is lowest amongst public sector workers, with 41% saying that they are either not very or not at all motivated and 44% claiming to be less motivated than they were a year ago.

Employees in the public sector are also the most likely to be thinking about leaving their job, half (50%) said they were considering a change of job.

Employees in the North East are the least motivated in the UK, with 38% saying they are either not very or not at all motivated and 52% thinking about leaving their job in the next year.

In an earlier report (November 2007) similar YouGov research for IiP showed:

Less than a third (30%) of UK employees have complete trust in their manager, with almost eight in ten (78%) believing that their manager has let them down in the past.

Over half (55%) of employees believe that their manager only has their best interests at heart when it suits them.

Managers are most likely to let down employees by failing to provide the support they need to do their job (49%), failing to respond to concerns expressed by employees (48%) or withholding information which impacts on them (45%).

Sharing information in confidence with another member of staff was cited by over half (55%) of employees as the worst possible type of betrayal by their manager.

Employees’ lack of trust in their managers is most apparent when asked who they would confide in regarding a sensitive work-related matter: less than one-quarter (21%) would look to their boss, with 55% turning instead to a colleague or contemporary in times of trouble.

Alarmingly, this lack of trust in managers can have serious consequences: respondents said it can lead to lowered employee morale (68%), destroy team spirit (46%) and result in people looking for a new job (42%).

Anyone for Progressive Management?

This new 2 hour seminar is aimed at Managers, Senior Managers, Leaders and Human Resource Managers from any type of organisation where improving performance matters.

It will show how managers can quickly boost their managerial effectiveness.

The seminar will introduce participants to four practical management processes that are the hallmark of highly effective managers. These four processes will ensure that:

• Communication and employee engagement is significantly improved
• A sense of urgency is developed
• Underperformers are managed effectively
• High performers are recognised and retained
• Every team member is coached, every week, to improve performance
• Every team member is regularly given new tasks and assignments to help them and the business to develop
• Business strategies, plans and values are put into practice
• Will understand how mastery of 4 key management practices will unlock the key to being an exceptional manager.

“All of our managers have done NVQs in operational management – but still shied away from managing poor performers. Now they have the tools they need to manage this group effectively”

“That was an inspiring session”

“I would have liked longer”

Fiercely practical management training to make you stand out from the managerial crowd