Five Star Blog

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The value of a great Executive Sponsor cannot be understated.

Great Executive Sponsors turn frustrated groups of people into highly effective teams that enable each individual team member to use their strengths to execute with laser precision. Without a great Executive Sponsor, most strategic projects are doomed to fail due to lack of organizational commitment and the team’s inability to overcome certain obstacles alone.

Given this apparent need for Executive Sponsors, why is there such a shortage of great Executive Sponsors in today’s business world?

The answer to this question is somewhat unclear. However, the typical reasons for lack of Executive Sponsorship include time challenges and conflicting priorities that prevent an executive from investing the time necessary to become a great sponsor. These are valid “symptoms,” but have you ever considered that a possible root cause for the shortage of great Executive Sponsors in most organizations is lack of focus and alignment among leaders?

If a leadership team is not focused and aligned around a shared vision or a compelling organizational purpose, all projects quickly become “top priority projects” that must be implemented congruently and with immediate urgency. Ultimately, this lack of focus limits the effectiveness of everyone, including executives.

For a leadership team (and ultimately the organization) to become high-performing, each member must be willing and able to work together to achieve the organization’s compelling purpose. A compelling purpose provides direction and helps leaders evaluate the ultimate priority of projects and initiatives, and as a result it enables executives to allocate the necessary time they need to serve in the ever-important role of Executive Sponsor.

What do you think? Use the comments section below to offer your ideas as to why there is a lack of great Executive Sponsors.

Have you ever blamed your stagnant desk job for your ever-increasing waist size? After a long day’s work, it’s not always easy to drag yourself to the gym. What if you could work on developing a healthier, fitter you while you’re at work?

Recently, two Five Star team members collaborated to develop a voluntary fitness program for our office. It’s no secret that exercising relieves stress and contributes to an increase in energy and personal motivation. Also, as one of Five Star’s team members recently pointed out, “It’s a great benefit for companies to offer their employees. It builds camaraderie and a sense of motivation that spills over into their actual work.”

Now, just two weeks into the program, and a combined 12,464 calories and 17 pounds lighter, Five Star employees are reaping the benefits of a healthier work life, and Five Star is reaping the benefits of greater employee focus on personal wellness.

But, what would a fitness program for your office look like?

Here are a few suggested activities to get your office moving in a healthier direction:

1. Take your next meeting on the move.
   Getting up from your desk just to take another seat in your conference room isn’t exactly exercise. Meetings can often consume your entire day, so try not to take all of your meetings sitting down! Suggest walking meetings, when appropriate, and you’ll find that the great ideas might flow more freely given some fresh air. Also, for a really fun idea check out  the Conference Bike!
2. Survey activity interests.
   People won’t willingly participate in activities unless they self-select them based on their own personal interests. Offer a survey with a diverse list of activities, maybe yoga, jogging, or walking. That way there is something for everyone. Then decide to sponsor the top three selections, for example.
3. Try Gyminee.
   Gyminee is a great online program option for your employees to track their successes. Goal-setting is key to an effective fitness program. Gyminee enables employees to select personalized work-out programs, track daily nutrition intake, and it also enables employees to tally group achievements. Learn more about it at: http://www.gyminee.com.

As one of our team members put it, “there is nothing bad about exercising.” People feel better and have more motivation with exercise than without. Think about starting your own office fitness program today!

Have you ever wondered who came up with the unwritten “rule” that work can’t be fun? Or, why is work so often considered the exact opposite of fun? Obviously, the fellow in this video doesn’t believe in following this rule. Check it out!

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics has found that an average American spends 8.7 hours of each day working. This is equivalent to 36.35% of a day. If this statistic is extended over the life span of an average American, it is safe to assume that a person will spend a total of 19 years and 8 months working. These are staggering numbers; especially if you consider the amount of time that people spend not having fun at work!

Creating a culture where fun is integrated into the day-to-day operations of an organization can be a key differentiator for a company. How can you create a highly productive environment where a culture of fun is encouraged and rewarded? Here are a few possible ideas.

1. Celebrate individual and team accomplishments.
   One of the greatest joys of working collaboratively with others is seeing the fruits of your work take shape. Yet oftentimes, individual efforts and team accomplishments tend to be quickly forgotten as people rapidly move onto the next task at hand. Although this happens frequently in today’s deadline sensitive world, it does not mean it is right! Taking time to celebrate accomplishments adds meaning and purpose to daily work and helps people appreciate the unique contributions every team member makes to an organization. Every organization and person can view celebrations differently. For some, the celebration might be a simple lunch or dinner together, but for others it might include time spent doing an enjoyable activity outside of work. Regardless of how your team decides to celebrate, the key is making a commitment to celebrate!
2. Don’t be afraid to use humor appropriately.
   When was the last time you had a good laugh at work? One of the most important things to glean from the video of the steward above is that he sought to interject a little humor and fun into his otherwise routine task. Work doesn’t always have to equal hard labor! Taking time to laugh and add an appropriate amount of humor to your daily tasks can help transform routine or difficult tasks into much more exciting opportunities.
3. Choose to have a positive attitude at work.
   A powerful, yet frequently unpopular way to increase the “fun” scale of a work environment is to evaluate how one’s attitude is impacting others. Every person’s work attitude can have either a positive or negative impact on others. If you have not done this before, commit an entire day to raising your level of awareness of your personal attitude by trying to maintain a positive “can do” attitude as much as possible. You will quickly see that your attitude can have a positive impact on those with whom you interact!

Obviously there are limits and boundaries, and we’re certainly not advocating a free-for-all work environment. But, what we are suggesting is that you take a serious look at how you and your team can create and sustain a fun and productive work culture. Who knows, maybe your organization can rewrite that unwritten rule that work can’t be fun!

The face of leadership is changing, literally. It’s common knowledge that over the next 5-15 years, many current leaders will be exiting the workforce. Much has been written about the merits of developing leaders now to fill the impending pipeline shortage. This makes sense. However, a fundamental question remains. How is your organization identifying the emerging leaders it needs to develop?

Since the importance of emerging leaders is a timely topic, we’ve recently been asked that very fundamental question ourselves. In response, we have identified several strategies that when implemented together help an organization identify its emerging leaders, both internally and externally.

Bring high-potential leaders in the door in the first place.

• The hiring phase offers a great opportunity for your organization to engage emerging leaders right off the bat. Seek to hire talented individuals with demonstrated or potential leadership qualities.
• Make the interview count. Add questions to the interview slate that are targeted at leadership. In this way, you give the potential candidate the opportunity to acknowledge his/her leadership qualities.
• Even if the most ideal interview process for identifying emerging leaders is in place, there is one important step left. Current managers must understand what potential leadership looks like. If they don’t, they will miss important cues given by the candidate.

Evaluate with a standard assessment.

• Once talent is brought into the organization, develop a fair process for evaluating high- potential leaders. Create a standardized system of measurement to ensure that all emerging leaders are evaluated using common criteria and behaviors.
• What should this system of measurement include? An effective system of measurement includes an assessment of common behaviors against expectations and an opportunity to write open comments.

Validate with current leaders, peers, business partners, and customers.

• Once an emerging leader is identified, it is vital to validate assessment data against the perceptions of those who work with the high-potential leader. The first step of this process is to facilitate a consistent chain of communication with their current leaders to gain their input and recommendations on what development areas currently exist and what opportunities could be made available to help accelerate potential.
• Encourage peer assessment, because peers help shed light on the true character of a potential leader and the consistency of that character.
• Before beginning to develop an emerging leader, don’t forget to ask for input from business partners (HR, for example), because they can provide confirmation that the potential leader is in good standing.
• Sometimes an outside opinion offers the kind of perspective you may need to help understand key behaviors deemed valuable to leaders in your organization. A great way to gather such information is by asking customers for their insights on the emerging leader. Customers deliver experiential feedback on how successful the potential leader has been in living up to expectations and representing the values of your organization.

Make sure your organization is ready for the imminent leadership challenge. Take the chance to turn this future challenge into a great opportunity by effectively identifying emerging leaders now.