While W. Edwards Deming is best known for helping Japan emerge from the post-World War II defeat by introducing quality concepts and process flow methods to their manufacturing companies, his methods can also have relevance in driving engagement strategy for health and well-being improvement.

Deming was a statistician by training who believed that quality was the result of having appropriate inputs to a defined process and the having effective implementation of that process on a correct and repeatable basis.

He told the Japanese to treat manufacturing as a system rather than “bits and pieces.” He advised them to include the supplier and the customer in the system and to use feedback from the customer to continually improve products, services and processes.

His teachings led to the Japan’s economic resurgence in the ’50s as their leading export companies adopted his methods.

Consider the way that many health and well-being improvement programs are put together – often with multiple vendors, an array of communications from different sources, and many “teachable moment” opportunities. There are actually several processes that comprise effective engagement. If we were to “map out” all that goes into the engagement process, we’d see an array of flows, including these:

The participant screening and assessment that leads to various intervention options or other types of support, some of which have multiple stages:

- The marketing process that guides individuals to the interventions

- The incentive design and delivery process

- The method for collecting metrics to determine program impact

All these elements combined represent a giant puzzle of moving parts that need to be coordinated and optimized in spirit of continuous improvement. Think of the various inputs and outputs and how they could be enhanced with a true commitment to quality in the process flow, rather than simple “silo hand-offs.” There is much to be done to better integrate vendor partners in areas other than technology platforms and data sharing.

We need to both listen to and understand the customer (employee) and integrate their feedback. Many more lessons from Deming’s work can inform and improve the ability to move employees along the continuum toward improved health and well-being. And when we think of the “quality of life” that can result from such an approach, we can thank Dr. Deming for another contribution.

And to ensure success, companies also need to have better peripheral vision across the many processes that make up their health and well-being improvement offer. We have too many silos that limit effectiveness and that hinders quality and performance as well.

Frank Hone is managing director of Healthcentric Partners ( http://www.healthcentricpartners.com ), the first and only engagement strategy and marketing consultancy for employee health and well-being improvement. The firm supports companies committed to encouraging health behavior change in their workforce. Our strategic frameworks and consumer marketing orientation help increase participation in your programs. “We don’t create health and well-being improvement programs, we help ensure they connect and perform better.” Contact Frank at frank.hone@healthcentricpartners.com or call 917 375-7716.

In this article on the theme of change at work, let me invite you to become a change agent – or better yet a change champion! A change role model! And to that effect, here is a simple model: it’s called SHIFT™ and you can use it to take others on an exciting rather than painful change journey.

If you struggle with change yourself, let me invite you to read the companion article entitled “4 Steps to Embracing Change” which presents the VEER™ model, a 4-step process to assist you with coping constructively with change so it’s not so draining, either mentally and physically.

But on to the SHIFT™ model which has five steps as follows:

‘S’ is for ‘Situation’

The first reaction to change is usually negative and people need to understand the rationale for change if they are to embrace it and contribute to it rather than resist it. So your role as change leader is to make the case for change and win hearts and minds.

Let me suggest to you that the biggest question you need to tackle when making the case for change is not ‘what’ but rather ‘why’ and particularly ‘why now’. What I have observed is that folks will get the rationale for change – what it is and why it would be a good thing – but many will ask ‘why now?’. There is often so much going on that, for many, change is an unwelcome disruption and, even if they can see its benefits, they would rather postpone it if possible.

So, as you explain the situation which warrants a change, seek to create a sense of urgency: emphasize the crisis which needs quick resolution, or the opportunity which needs a rapid response. That situation cannot be ‘business as usual’. It’s here and now. Show them a window closing fast.

‘H’ is for ‘Hooking Up’

No matter how enthusiastic and no matter how powerful the case for change, resistance to change requires repetition and effort on the part of the change champion. So assemble your change team. Identify individuals who understand and support the change but can also contribute to refining and rolling out the change. It may make sense to select people who have complementary skills to yours, or who have a following they can sell the change to.

These folks will act as both doers and communicators. Communication-wise, if they are your direct reports, they will relay your message across the layers of your team. If you are the originator of change, you will need ambassadors who will address some of the constituencies with which you are less visible.

As doers, they will manage and oversee the execution of change. There wil be obstacles — in folks’ minds but also of a more structural nature — to change and so a lot of action, action-planning and then action-doing, will be required to put in place the change, typically in a step-by-step approach.

‘I’ is for ‘Inspire’

One of the words most commonly associated to ‘change’ is ‘vision’ and so you may find it odd that it hasn’t come up earlier. But that is because one of the pitfalls of change is the risk of rushing to share the vision. If the ground hasn’t been prepared with a sense of urgency around a situation demanding a response or you have not built around you a team which will support your change leadership, you could well be crippling your vision for change.

If your audience is not ready to listen to a change proposal because they have no sense of urgency, your vision could fall on deaf ears and all your passion would go to waste. Similarly, your vision may need adjusting – to cater to the needs of many and have a greater chance of winning over a large majority: your team can help with both articulating your vision as well as communicating it in a variety of ways to a variety of constituencies.

So inspire by creating a vision, communicating the vision but also by removing obstacles to your change vision — psychological obstacles but also obstacles in the forms of processes and systems — that will otherwise seriously undermine the credibility of your vision for change. As part of your inspiring vision, encourage ‘out of the box’ thinking and experimenting.

‘F’ is for ‘Fast’

A lot of change initiatives take months to complete which creates the risk that folks will disengage as time passes and no sign of change is visible. So move fast by both planning and delivering ‘quick wins’. This may be challenging and require some imagination but ‘quick wins’ are crucial in my experience. First, they make the change tangible: they give people something to see, to talk about — and therefore to hang on to. It shows that change is here — to stay. It makes sure momentum does not falter. And when those who delivered these ‘quick wins’, you associate the change to real human beings: it is no longer just an idea, it is a human endeavour. ‘Quick wins’ become a rallying point.

‘T’ is for ‘Tuck in’

While I couldn’t be more positive about ‘quick wins’, let me nevertheless share with you that surface changes will not suffice over the longer run. So tuck in, dig in and ensure that fundamental changes take place gradually, embed change in the systems, processes and procedures, structures and infrastructure, and policies to institutionalise over time the manifestations of the change. This gradual process of embedding change also makes possible the monitoring of progress during the change journey. Institutionalising change will allow change to become permanent.

There you have it: a comprehensive yet simple process to lead your team through change so they are able to SHIFT™ effectively, buy into change and participate to it thanks to your stewardship.

Author of the “5 Gear Shifts to Accelerate your Career!” report, Alexandra helps ambitious and high-performing professionals tackle their frustration at work so that they resolve a complex problem, find a way out of a difficult situation or achieve a personally-meaningful objective.

As a Career Accelerator, Alexandra works with gifted individuals to obtain the promotion they deserve, orchestrate an in-house move to a different group, succeed fast in a new role as well as get clear about their next job and how to find it.

Networking is one of those activities we all know and for some of us, love to hate.

So, What should you do to leverage your best contacts, and how can you learn?

here are a few networking tips to get you going:

1. Get in touch:

Networking is not only about meeting people at networking events, it’s also about the contacts you already know. People you’ve worked with at your previous 9 – 5 gigs as well as your personal contacts.

Have you actually gotten back in touch with these people? have you kept them updated on what you’re currently up to in your business? What’s the point of going out to get new contacts when you’re not talking to the ones you already have?

Do this now:

Craft your warm letter to everyone in your address book – this includes those face book friends. (now’s the time for them to earn that label of friend). Tell them about what you’ve been up to these past months, tell them who your ideal clients really are, ask if they know of anyone that may require what you currently offer. – Do NOT pitch to these people.

Your warm letter is not about getting your contacts to buy but about getting them to connect you to their contact, so please don’t piss them off by trying to flog your services to them. (unless they specifically ask for it)

2. Offer Value:

People are more receptive when you’re offering value to them. With any contacts you make at your networking events, ask yourself how you can offer value to them first.

What can you contribute to help improve their situation. Ask them: What do you currently need help with? I don’t know if I can currently be of help to you or not on a vendor level but i’d like to help.

Networking is relationship building and nothing builds relationships by looking for ways to be of help to each other. You don’t have to offer your services for free, but you can give a few pointers to get them started – if that’s the sort of help they require.

Do this:

Always go into conversations with a view on asking questions that can help and offer value rather than trying to pitch or flog your services.

3. Follow Up:

It’s crazy how a lot of people collect business cards but never get round to following up.

Some people actually do follow up but fail to recognise that it takes more than one phone conversation to build a relationship that keeps you in the mind of potential referral partners. There are so many ways of following up and these include:

1. recommendations

2. catching up

3. referrals

4. personal notes

5. thank yous.

Why do you need to do all of these?

we’re all busy busy people. We only remember those that are at the forefront of our minds. So, for you to leverage this, you have to constantly keep in touch. It’s not as difficult as you think.

LinkedIn is a great place to quickly offer recommendations and testimonials. A quick email to “check- in” to make sure they’re okay as well as links you think they’ll find useful doesn’t take hours. Catching up can be done via Skype nowadays, so you don’t have to go out if time is tight.

Do this:

focus on your current list of contacts. When was the last time you actually checked in to have a quick catch up, Can you provide recommendations for them, Did they do something which you still haven’t gotten round to saying “thank you” for?

Go and get it done.

Conclusion:

Networking is not about collecting contacts – it’s about making business happen. Business only happens if there is a connection and shared sense of values.

It’s not about knowing a lot of people, it’s about knowing the right sort of people with access to a wide pool of your potential customers or a connection that could lead to an introduction. Focus on making everyone you come in contact with feel important.

WHAT TO DO NEXT?

Struggling with marketing? Trying all you can with different strategies but it’s just not coming together?

If you want to really get good at marketing and start getting more clients and customers in your business, you’ll need to learn a few strategies (like networking and getting good at sales amongst others) that work amazingly well. These methods are simple to pick up and don’t take much practice. You can start by learning more about networking and sales here: Sales Conversations

Elizabeth Archibong is a Small Business Marketing consultant at Minted Creative who teaches small business owners that struggle with marketing, how to get clients consistently without pushing too hard.

Networking is an extremely effective tool for career advancement. Whether you are an entrepreneur or work for a company, finding a mentor/sponsor, connecting with leaders in the industry and developing your personal brand are key. These strategies can elevate your networking game to the next level.

At events, meetings or gatherings, it is important to be networking focused. It is essential to be prepared and open to opportunities. Many savvy networkers (extroverts and introverts alike) have difficulties approaching senior management or leaders within their companies and industries. Due to social or political cues, many individuals tend to be intimidated and miss the chance to promote their career or social endeavors.

Listed below are a few helpful tips for connecting with high level executives and building a strong and viable network.

Have a Game Plan

It is great to attend functions and meet/connect with individuals. But when you are intending to connect with higher level executives, it is imperative that you have a game plan. Know exactly how you want to introduce yourself or be introduced by another professional. After the introduction, you should know exactly what to say to get the conversation going in the right direction. Do some research on the individual and their roles within the organization. Find out if they have received awards and special recognitions. Ask questions that relate to the future success of the company or solutions for challenges the company, employees or industry are facing.

Call To Action

After you have introduced yourself and made meaningful conversation, exchange business cards. Reinforce your professional image and brand while getting their direct contact information. Conduct good business card etiquette and suggest a follow up. Be creative in your follow up request. Offer to meet at their office or attend an event they are hosting. Pick a social or community event to continue the dialogue and connection. Show that you are interested in developing a purposeful relationship and long term partnership. Remember to follow up in a timely manner as a sign of courtesy and respect.

Use these tips to broaden your network and reach out to leaders in your company or industry. Be professional and intentional in your processes for communicating and building relationships.

1. Find the Creators of the Information You Read

Identify other people and business that have an influence in your Social area of expertise. The best place to start looking is the sites that you relate to for relevant content, such as blogs and websites of similar nature to your content. These people will tend to have a social presence, and you can simply follow them on their Social Media sites, such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Interact with them and like, comment and share their articles or blogs. Once you have done this compliment them with positive feedback.

2. There’s no better way than to Become an Author Yourself

Simply join in the conversations in your area of expertise, and begin writing content either for your own blog or to publish on online article platforms. This will allow you to give your opinion and discuss relevant information with people of similar interests on Social networks, causing you to have people reach out to you with advice, comments and ideas of their own.

If you’re not the type that likes to write, here is a Secret Key Ingredient: Stick with what you know, and think of questions that you would ask someone in your field, write these down and then attempt to answer the questions, you will be surprised and how much content you will able to create.

3. Tweaking Twitter

Twitter is a great source of information, and the best way to find relevant information is to tweak your searches and filter with relevant keywords to find people and tweets and then simply join the conversation. As an example, if you work in graphic design, the most obvious place to start would be a keyword like “graphic design.”

This isn’t rocket science, its simple and does require some trial and error to find what works for you. It is always a good idea to play around with different keywords and join conversations where you find something of interest. One of the best ways is to reply to peoples tweets and give your opinions, with a link to your sites or social presence.

4. Join LinkedIn and related Groups

These are some of the best forums to join online, and all you need to do is a quick group search your related discussions and join the online conversations with others in your niche. It is always a good idea, before you join these groups to do your research and make sure that they have valuable information to help you. If you work in the Car-Auto Industry, then, a Healthcare group is a definite no. Some of the groups are open, and some are by invite only. Look around at what others are discussing in the groups and make sure it fits with your niche.

5. Keep an open Eye for people Who are Looking at You

Scan through the people whom have viewed your LinkedIn Profile, and when you find that is appropriate connect with them, and engage in conversation showing interest and creating a New Professional Relationship.

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